The Montgomery Building

[Spartan]

Despite the fact that there is a parking deck diagonally across the street from this building, I'm mildly skeptical about how successful retail will be since the primary pedestrian activity in Spartanburg is not (currently) along Church Street. That said, I hope I'm wrong and that more pedestrian traffic will be generated because of it. 

[roads-scholar]

49 minutes ago, Spartan said:

Despite the fact that there is a parking deck diagonally across the street from this building, I'm mildly skeptical about how successful retail will be since the primary pedestrian activity in Spartanburg is not (currently) along Church Street. That said, I hope I'm wrong and that more pedestrian traffic will be generated because of it. 

I'm mildly optimistic because (1) the city will (or is supposed to) improve the streetscaping around the MB which should help with pedestrian access, (2) with 70+ apartments, offices, and other retail, there should be demand for a coffee shop, and (3) no such shop is in the immediate area serving  "The George" and the courthouse area. 

[westsider28]

The first section of flat panels is complete on the left-front from floor 5 to floor 9.  Looking good.

[westsider28]

Center section of flat panels are now up on floors 5-8.

Edited February 4, 2018 by westsider28

[roads-scholar]

5 hours ago, westsider28 said:

Center section of flat panels are now up on floors 5-8.

Will the bay window panels be replaced?

[westsider28]

@roads-scholar No.  The bay windows are copper (not concrete/cast-stone like the rest of the facade) and they're staying.  It will be interesting to see when they remove the white paint and restore them.

Edited February 5, 2018 by westsider28

[westsider28]

Quite a bit of panel progress has been made on the St. John Street-facing side recently.  They may be starting on the new interior staircase as well.  They're also replacing some of the window sills on the rear-facing windows (and they opened up the penthouse window).

[westsider28]

Noticed today that the metal frames around the windows/storefronts on floors 1 and 2 have been stripped (see left, rusty-looking frames) and repainted (right, grey-ish)!  Probably not the final coat, but it looks quite nice already.  Progress continues...

[westsider28]

The first decorative panel section has been put up between the 9th and 10th floors!  Can't wait to see more of these.

 

[roads-scholar]

9 hours ago, westsider28 said:

The first decorative panel section has been put up between the 9th and 10th floors!  Can't wait to see more of these.

 

The detail being put into this building is just amazing.  Thanks for the close-up. 

[westsider28]

More decorative panels up at the top of the NW corner! This is going to look amazing when finished.

[westsider28]

Decorative panels have now been added at the top of the first bay on the front of the building near the corner.  Beautiful!

[westsider28]

More decorative panels have been added to the third bay on the front (looks like they're holding off on the large "M" emblem on the 2nd bay until a bit later).  Also, the north side copper bay windows have had their emblems polished, and they're being painted the same color as the copper retail space frames (see 3rd photo below; and compare to my photo from March 20).  It's a shame they're not leaving the copper exposed, but I suppose it would tarnish anyway.  And painting it is likely more protective over the long term.  Progress is continuing swiftly!

 

[Spartan]

I agree it's a shame they are painting the bays. I think aged copper adds a nice patina to old buildings, not unlike the state house prior to the renovation. Oh well.

[hub-city]

It looks like they are painting them the same color green as the replacement windows.  It will look great, but I'd rather see the copper.

[westsider28]

During next month's Artwalk (May 17) there will be a silent auction of photos to raise money for the restoration of the Carolina Theater.  It's just a start and mostly to raise awareness; I presume that fundraising efforts will ramp up following this event.  The Facebook page mentions that the full restoration is estimated at $5.5 million.  I hope the whole community comes together to support this project.

@hub-city You're correct; the bay windows and storefronts are being painted a nice, rich forest green.  Not sure it comes through properly in these photos, but here you go:

Also, more decorative panels:

[roads-scholar]

11 hours ago, westsider28 said:

During next month's Artwalk (May 17) there will be a silent auction of photos to raise money for the restoration of the Carolina Theater.  It's just a start and mostly to raise awareness; I presume that fundraising efforts will ramp up following this event.  The Facebook page mentions that the full restoration is estimated at $5.5 million.  I hope the whole community comes together to support this project.

@hub-city You're correct; the bay windows and storefronts are being painted a nice, rich forest green.  Not sure it comes through properly in these photos, but here you go:

Also, more decorative panels:

Looks nice.  Thanks for posting!

[Spartan]

Wow, that green looks fantastic!

[westsider28]

The first "M" emblem is now up!  Looks fantastic!

[westsider28]

And now the other "M" is up as well!

[westsider28]

Here's a fantastic H-J article with an up-close look at the decorative panels.  Simply beautiful.  It says that the process of making the replica pieces takes about a week per design (making the mold from the old panel, enhancing it, pouring the new piece).  Some panels are made for a specific spot on the building, others (like the pillars between windows) are interchangeable.  Very interesting.

As a general construction update, all the exterior panels should be up by mid-June.  The main renovation--apartments, office space, common areas--should be complete by early November.   The retail spots will be up-fitted by each tenant as they're leased, I presume.  And of course the theater is a separate project.  Exciting!

[westsider28]

The copper bays on the St John Street side have now been painted green.  Panels are going up on the bottom 2 floors on that side as well (including one of the capitals).  Windows are in on floors 9 and 10 all the way around the building.  Here are some photos:

[gman430]

Sidewall Pizza. Around 4,000 square feet. Bottom floor. Early 2019 opening. Hiring 35-50 people. Lease signed.

More info: http://www.goupstate.com/news/20180522/sidewall-pizza-co-bringing-funky-hippy-vibe-to-montgomery-building

Edited May 22, 2018 by gman430

[westsider28]

The first 2nd-floor windows and ground floor clerestory windows are in.  This is the northern-most bay (future Little River location).

[westsider28]

Happy 93rd birthday to the Montgomery Building!  It opened on this day in 1925.  Can't wait to see it fully restored and reopened later this year!

The caption beneath this photo read, "This 10 story $1,250,000 combined office, theatre, and store building which was promoted by the Chamber of Commerce and financed by 355 citizens of the city will be officially opened today.  It stands at the corner of North Church and Elm streets."