Uptown Has Its First Permanent Resident In Decades
November 16, 2006
Greenwood, SC - Living in an Uptown Greenwood upper floor studio was common for many merchants many decades ago. Hopefully, that trend is returning as Greenwood celebrates its first downtown resident in many years.
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Local architect and builder, J. Phillip Jones, has announced the completion of Greenwood's first Uptown, privately owned, condominium in the Grier Building located at 327 Main Street. Mr. Jones and his wife, Susan, hosted a preview of the condominium on Tuesday, November 14. Several City of Greenwood officials, including Mayor Floyd Nicholson, and community business leaders attended the event.
"We are in hopes that this is only the first of many such projects that will bring new residential life to Uptown," stated Mr. Jones. "Many growing towns in the South are a jump or two ahead of us in this effort to rejuvenate the heart of the city. But we have as much potential for main street residential growth as anybody," Jones continued. |
Above - Brenda Woody, owner of the Grier Building's seventh-floor condominium, shakes hands with her architect on the project, J. Phillip Jones. Woody will be relocating to Greenwood from Hendersonville, NC. Photo by the Index Journal's Caroline Klapper. |
Mr. Jones was contracted for the project and began renovations in the eighty-five year old Grier Building earlier this year.
"The project first interested me because of the special conditions and limitations of this particular building. The owner wanted to keep as much of the original interior in place as possible, while concealing the updated mechanical aspects to the overall floor plan. I think we were able to achieve a very pleasing and livable atmosphere, while complying with the more stringent commercial code requirements," said Mr. Jones.
"The modern interior we see today can hardly be associated with the memory of the gutted floor, old plaster walls and ceiling, crude sprinkler pipes and an emergency alarm roped through what used to be the main hallway. Advanced Fire Protection modified the sprinkler system so as to be almost unnoticeable in this residential building," added Jones.
When Lawyers Realty, LLC purchased the Grier Building, the building housed only a limited number of offices and, at that time, much of the building was vacant. Not long after the acquisition; however, Chuck Watson, the managing officer of the of Lawyers Realty, LLC, had the foresight to create a "regime" in order to allow not only commercial but residential occupancy as well. He made the allowance for the floors in the building to be sold individually so that they could be developed as multiple offices or condominiums as the future purchaser might desire.
Cherry MacTaggart, owner and director of Uptown Counseling Professionals, jumped right on the bandwagon, renovating a floor for her offices.
Bob and Donna Taylor with Taylor Galleries also purchased and renovated both the first and second floors. They hope, in the near future, to begin renovation of another floor in the building for their personal residence.
At this time, it is unclear just how much of the remaining space in the building might be used for residential purposes.
The Grier Building also hosts various enterprises owned and operated by Kennemore Holdings and other professional and legal offices.
Residential Views from the Grier Building - Uptown Greenwood
ABOVE - The sun begins to set on the Uptown Countybank Clock Tower.
ABOVE - A view to the north of the church steeples of Main Street United Methodist Church and First Presbyterian Church.
ABOVE - A view of the cherished Uptown Greenwood landscape.
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