1736 Magazine - Vision for the Future

WINTER 2021
WATERWAYS EDITION
FINAL EDITION
VISION
for the
FUTURE
THE
ISSUE 3 | SPRING 2019
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The
REVITALIZATION
■ Museums see role
of
as marketers
DOWNTOWN
■ James Brown Arena
of DOWNTOWN ready AUGUSTA
for revamp
AUGUSTA

ISSUE 4|SUMMER 2019
ISSUE 2|WINTER 2019
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EDUCATION EDITION
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Coco Rubio,
Soul Bar
INFRASTRUCTURE EDITION
Bridging the Future: Twostateleaderswant
new13th
Streetspan to be‘iconic’
I SUMMER 2020
DOWNTOWN
AUGUSTACULTURAL
PAGE 14
1736magazine.com u 1
EDITION
WINTER 2020
PRESERVATION EDITION
• High cost,low payback
constrain developersfrom
tackling big projects
• Historic BroadStreet
bank branch returning
to former glory
BroadStreetmakeoveris
alinchpin fordowntown’s
improvement efforts
AMAP OF
DOWNTOWN
24
ATTRACTIONS
PAGE 32-33
-plus-
HEART OF
THE CITY
7
FACES OF
DOWNTOWN
ARTS ENTERTAINMENT &CULTURE EDITION
T
H
EREVITALIZATION
of DOWNTOWN AUGUSTA
THE
REVITALIZATION
of DOWNTOWN AUGUSTA
The
REVITALIZATION
of DOWNTOWN
AUGUSTA
FORBEING PART OF THE MOVEMENT.
1736
THE
REVITALIZATION
OFDOWNTOWN
AUGUSTA
THE REVITALIZATION
of
DOWNTOWN
AUGUSTA
HASHELPEDBRING CHANGE.
COVID-19:
AHAPPYFACE?
Downtown business ownerstry to
keep smilingamid pandemic
Allissuesof1736 are availableonline at 1736magazine.com.
Facing
REALITY
Blighted buildings,
vandalism make
downtownAugusta
appear less safe
than it is

62
A PRODUCT OF
PRESIDENT
TONY BERNADOS
EDITOR
JOHN GOGICK
DESIGNER
GANNETT DESIGN CENTER - AUSTIN
MAILING ADDRESS:
725 BROAD STREET, AUGUSTA, GA 30901
TELEPHONE:
706.724.0851
EDITORIAL:
JOHN GOGICK
JGOGICK@AUGUSTACHRONICLE.COM
ADVERTISING:
706.823.3400
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CONTENTS
4
PICTURE THIS
6
ON THE STREET
8
COVER STORY: DOWNTOWN
OUTLOOK
18
HILDEBRANDT’S
28
BROAD STREET BULLIES
32
DOWNTOWN EXPECTED
TO GROW
39
A LOOK AT SPLOST 8
28
42
MUSEUM PROJECTS
48
A NEW JAMES BROWN ARENA
52
LOCK AND DAM
64
SCULPTURE TRAIL
71
FINAL WORDS
COVER IMAGE BY: MICHAEL HOLAHAN
1736magazine.com | 3

PICTURE THIS
4 | 1736magazine.com

The view of downtown Augusta, Ga., as seen
from the top of the Hyatt House Hotel on
Broad Street on a rainy day in January.
[MICHAEL HOLAHAN/THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
1736magazine.com | 5

ON THE STREET
Downtown Augusta
exhibits resiliency
By MARGARET WOODARD
The global pandemic of
2020 certainly tested
downtown Augusta’s
resiliency but is losing
the battle as we enter
2021. We still have a ways to go to
get to the other side but preliminary
indicators predict a brighter
than expected outcome for our city
center.
Downtown Augusta is so much to
so many. It is where our residents
come to enjoy a great meal or concert
and attend our many unique
festivals and events. On average,
there are 16,000 employees and
customers in downtown on a daily
basis and each typically visits 4.5
places of business.
It is where our visitors come to
see our cultural amenities and stay
in our hotels. Eighty percent of
our visitors travel 30 miles and 20
percent, 250 miles.
Finally, it is home to many of our
small businesses in Augusta. On
Broad Street from 13th to Seventh
there are 238 small businesses
alone. They include chef-owned
restaurants, specialty retail stores
and art galleries. These small businesses
give us our unique character,
provide jobs and fill our tax coffers.
In April, our workforce left and
worked remotely from home,
our residents and visitors were
sheltered in place and our nonessential
businesses were closed.
In a matter of days, we went from a
vibrant city center with flourishing
businesses to a ghost town with so
much uncertainty it was difficult to
navigate the waters.
Margaret Woodard, with the Augusta Downtown Development Authority, says “Small
businesses are the faces of downtown.” [FILE/THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
Our customer base plummeted
to zero and our computer inboxes
were filled with nationwide predictions.
It was estimated that 35% of
small businesses across the nation
would not survive the pandemic
and would close their doors for
good by the end of 2020.
Many of our small businesses
were able to shift quickly, adopting
creative new programs and crafting
new ways of doing business. Some
garnered state and regional recognition
but all of them made us proud.
Most everyone realized quickly
the importance of an online presence
and got their products on a
website. Second City Distillery
shifted from bourbon distilling
to making hand sanitizer. Keen
Printing began manufacturing and
installing plastic sneeze guards
across the region.
Many businesses made curbside
pick-up easy and provided home
delivery. There were many successful
Go Fund Me campaigns.
Finally, there was a strong call
to action from the Downtown
Development Authority, Augusta
Metro Chamber of Commerce,
Augusta Convention & Visitors
Bureau and other outside agencies
to shop local. The City of Augusta
established a small business relief
fund program and waived alcohol
license fees.
As we enter 2021, a preliminary
windshield survey of the Broad
Street Corridor reveals we are far
from the predicted national closure
rate and will see a net gain of new
businesses for 2020.
Yes, we lost several small busi-
6 | 1736magazine.com

The Broad Street Bullies Grill is one of several new restaurants that opened during the pandemic. [MICHAEL HOLAHAN/THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
nesses in 2020. Bees Knees, The
Hive and Sunshine Bakery have
closed indefinitely. American Journeyman
and Curvitude have closed
their brick and mortar and gone to
an online presence. Artsy Me has
closed its doors.
But many new faces have joined
us. Tech 4 Success and Pineapple
Tavern opened days before the
pandemic and have thrived. In
a recent article in the Augusta
Chronicle, Richard Green owner of
Tech 4 Success said, “Opportunity
knocked. With many people homebound,
there was a huge increase
in the need for computers.” Allan
Soto, owner of Vinea Capital and
Pineapple Tavern was recently
named Small Entrepreneur of the
Year by the Augusta Metro Chamber
of Commerce.
Other new restaurants include
Edgars Above Broad, Laziza Mediterranean,
Broad Street Bullies Grill
and Pasches Soul Food Caribbean.
New specialty retail stores
include Sew & Company, Shelvie
Jean Boutique, Masters of Paint
Gallery and Grantski Records.
Additional businesses are slated
to open in the first quarter of 2021
and the housing market remains
strong with several new projects
under construction.
Please continue to support the
many wonderful small businesses
in downtown Augusta as we enter
the New Year. Restaurants and bars
are still operating at a mandated
reduced capacity and still need you
more than ever.
New businesses will continue to
open in downtowns where there is
strong loyalty and customer base.
We have proven that in downtown
Augusta. Let’s continue the
momentum to get to the other side
of this pandemic.
Small businesses are the faces of
downtown. They are our neighbors
and friends. They are the heart and
soul of downtown Augusta.
Margaret Woodard is the executive
director of the Augusta Downtown
Development Authority.
1736magazine.com | 7

COVER STORY
Downtown businesses
new, old see bright future
Story by AMANDA KING | Photos by MICHAEL HOLAHAN
From a 120-year-old business to a recently opened one on
Broad Street, Augusta’s downtown has endured a series
of changes throughout its history and is preparing for a
bright future as more businesses make their way back.
8 | 1736magazine.com
The new Laziza
Mediterranean
Grill at the
corner of Broad
and 9th streets
in downtown
Augusta.

Jeff Gorelick and Bonnie Ruben are the owners of Ruben’s Department Store, which has been on Broad Street for more than 120 years.
Downtowns across America saw
their height just prior to World
War II with bustling shoppers
frequenting department stores on
main streets, according to Margaret
Woodard, executive director for the
Augusta Downtown Development
Authority. When troops returned
home from battle, subsidies gave
them the ability to move from
downtown to the suburbs and took
away much of the street traffic to
which stores were accustomed. It
would be another 30 years before
retailers would catch on to the
trend and move stores into malls
and strip malls.
“All the retail literally left,”
Woodard said. “There really wasn’t
a living presence in downtown
Augusta with the exception of Old
Towne.”
In the 1980s, the General
Assembly in Atlanta authorized the
Downtown Development Authority
to help struggling downtown
Ruben’s Department Store has been a fixture on Broad Street in Augusta since the 1890s.
areas regain strength. For Augusta,
that meant the development of
Artist’s Row on the 1000 block of
Broad Street. Restaurants including
Nacho Mama’s and bars like Soul
Bar opened around the same time in
response to the initiative.
In recent years, Baby Boomers
1736magazine.com | 9

Managing Downtown Augusta’s Most
Valuable Assets For Over a Century.
bandccommercial.com

Dr. Benjamin Casella, left, and his father, Dr. Thomas Casella, are keeping the family business going at Casella Eye Center on Broad Street. The practice was
started by Thomas Casella’s father, Dr. Victor Casella, on Jan. 15, 1948.
began to make their way back to
the urban core where they grew up,
and Millennials were looking for a
walkable community and affordable
housing away from the suburbs. Real
estate for downtown Augusta began
to boom once more, prompting more
restaurants and stores to gravitate to
downtown, Woodard said.
Just as things were beginning to
pick up, the country was struck by
the COVID-19 pandemic. Although
many retailers and restaurateurs
were preparing to open in downtown
Augusta, that was placed on
hold with the prediction by the
Small Business Administration that
one-third of businesses would meet
their demise as a result of the virusinduced
restrictions.
But hope for downtown is just
around the corner, Woodard contends.
New restaurants, retail and
offices are making plans to open
in 2021 with efforts to cope with
the pandemic. Present businesses
have weathered through years of
changes and growth and shared
their experiences and plans with us.
CUSTOMER SERVICE THE KEY
TO SUSTAINING BUSINESS
OVER A CENTURY
Fashion changes each season, but
a local retailer has stood the test of
time by providing men’s, women’s
and children’s clothing and shoes
to the Augusta area for more than
120 years.
Max and Rebecca Ruben opened
Ruben’s Department Store in 1898
after emigrating from Eastern
Europe, according to The Augusta
Chronicle archives. Their son, Paul
Ruben, owned and operated the store
until 1979. His daughter, Bonnie
Ruben, took over with her husband,
Jeff Gorelick, who is now the vice
president and general manager.
Ruben’s longevity at the 900
block of Broad Street has allowed
generations of families to frequent
the retailer. The secret to the
business’ continued success has
been their customer service and
the ability to provide hard-to-find
sizes and items, the owners say.
If they don’t have a product in the
store, they’re able to find it for
the customer and that keeps them
coming back.
“Most of the people who come in
have known our clerks for 10, 20 or
30 years,” Gorelick said. “Service
has been what we’re famous for. No
size is too big or small for us.”
Gorelick said a man recently
came in for matching suits for him,
12 | 1736magazine.com

his son and grandson for a 75th
birthday celebration.
“That’s pretty cool when you
think about it,” he said.
Even after more than 120 years in
business, Gorelick thinks the best
has yet to come not only for downtown
Augusta but Ruben’s as well.
He said the store will be modernizing
in the near future, but declined
to share any specific plans.
“But we’re going to keep the
same customer service we always
have,” he said.
THREE GENERATIONS OF
DOCTORS SEE REASON TO STAY
Frog Hollow Tavern opened on Broad Street in 2010.
Dr. Victor Casella opened
Casella’s Eye Center on Jan. 15,
1948, after serving his country in
World War II.
“Broad Street was just booming,”
said his son, Dr. Thomas Casella.
When Casella took over the
practice in 1978, the “boom” had
dwindled as businesses moved
to the recently demolished
Regency Mall. But that didn’t
keep people away completely,
Casella remembers. Downtown
rolled with the punches and
drifted away from large retail
and opened more restaurants and
specialty stores.
“We’ve always been a destination
spot because people just wanted to
come see us,” he said.
In 2008, Casella’s son, Ben
Casella, joined his practice.
With a third generation added
to the mix and Casella’s love for
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1736magazine.com | 13

Sean Wight, chef and owner of downtown’s Frog Hollow Tavern, has plans for the former Blue Sky Kitchen location at Tenth and Broad streets: a noodle bar
called Pho-Ramen’l and Tacocat, which will feature street tacos and margaritas.
downtown, he doesn’t expect to
go anywhere.
“I love being downtown – I love
the diversity of the people, the
atmosphere,” he said. “I wouldn’t
want to be anywhere else.”
The optometrist would like to see
some improvements to downtown
including a bigger presence from
Augusta University. He suggested
more living options for students
as well as classrooms similar
to Savannah College of Art and
Design.
“That would be the driving force
behind downtown,” he said.
And while Casella’s office doesn’t
rely on foot traffic for its patients,
he realizes many businesses around
him do. He often makes suggestions
to patients on where to eat or
visit while attending appointments,
which has been more difficult
in recent months because of the
COVID-19 pandemic.
“We gotta get through this
COVID business,” he said. “We
were on a big upkick and like everywhere
else it just kind of mellowed
things out but I think we’re good.”
FROM FROG HOLLOW AND
FARMHAUS TO TACOCAT
Sean Wight has been a familiar
face in downtown for just over a
decade. After opening Frog Hollow
Tavern in 2010, the restaurateur
continues to come up with new
and inventive ideas to bring people
in from throughout the area for
a casual burger lunch or a fancy
dinner to commemorate a special
occasion. Three years after opening,
the chef opened Craft and Vine
and Farmhaus Burgers just a stone’s
throw from Frog Hollow.
“Every city you go to has a
central downtown area and that’s
where it begins,” he said. “That’s
the heart of Augusta and we want to
be a part of that.”
Wight took his ideas from
downtown to the suburbs when he
opened a second Farmhaus location
in 2016 and Frog and the Hen
in 2019 on Flowing Wells Road in
Columbia County.
Now, Wight is returning to
downtown for a restaurant in the
former Blue Sky Kitchen location
on the corner of Tenth and Broad
streets. The front of the building
will be a noodle bar called
Pho-Ramen’l and the back will be
Tacocat, which will feature street
tacos and margaritas. His plan
includes providing more affordable
options for patrons as they battle
14 | 1736magazine.com

Laziza Mediterranean Grill owner Nader Khatib has opened a second location of his restaurant on Broad Street.
the pandemic.
“I think that’s where the need is
going to be for a while,” he said.
With Jordan Johnson as the new
commissioner representing downtown,
Wight hopes conditions will
continue to improve to help drive
more people to the area.
“I hope to see some more parking
and lights but business has been
good,” Wight said.
He said he also hopes that the
return of the performing arts at
venues such as the Miller Theater
and Imperial Theatre will help bring
people back to downtown’s streets.
GO EAST, YOUNG MAN: EVANS
RESTAURANT MAKES ITS WAY TO
DOWNTOWN
While many local restaurants and
retailers have made the switch from
downtown and Richmond County
locations to Columbia County,
Nader Khatib did the opposite
A big ceramic frog on display at the Frog Hollow Tavern.
by taking his successful Laziza
Mediterranean Grill in Evans and
opening a second location on Broad
Street.
As the Augusta University Cyber
Center was preparing to open and
the arts and medical district continued
to grow, Khatib knew it was
the perfect location for his unique
restaurant. The downtown location
opened Nov. 3 after years of preparation
and renovation of the space
16 | 1736magazine.com

Jared Williams, left, and John Dunn have lunch at the
downtown Laziza Mediterranean Grill shortly after it opened in
November.
on the corner of Broad Street and James Brown
Boulevard.
“I love the architecture down here and some
of these older buildings really had a character,”
Khatib said. “I saw this space and it’s huge and
was built in the 1800s.”
The new space would allow for more catering
opportunities downtown, which he was
already doing in Evans. Customers from North
Augusta, who were already driving to Columbia
County for meals, can now simply cross
the river for a taste of authentic Mediterranean
food, he said.
Although Laziza is the new kid on the block
compared to other businesses in the downtown
area, Khatib has endured the same challenge as
the other owners with the COVID-19 pandemic
taking a brutal hit on local business.
“It can only go up,” Khatib said. “Once
COVID lightens its grip on us, we hope to see
more and more business from out of town.”
Nonetheless, he remains hopeful as the City
of Augusta installed art sculptures and is working
to bring people downtown. He hopes there
will be more done to give storefronts a facelift to
be more appealing to visitors.
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18 | 1736magazine.com

Iconic local business By JOE HOTCHKISS
surviving second pandemic
Data analysts are still calculating
exactly how many U.S. businesses
have closed during the
COVID-19 pandemic.
Then there are some businesses
that have survived two
pandemics.
Hildebrandt’s has operated first as a
grocery store and later a delicatessen in
downtown Augusta since 1879. It still
serves lunch six days a week. It not only
stayed open during the first wave of the
coronavirus, but also stayed in business
during the flu pandemic of 1918-19.
Luanne Hildebrandt represents the
fourth generation of the family to run the
business.
“Some people were just afraid to go out.
I still have people who say they’re going to
wait until this is over before they go out to
eat, or some people who come to the curb
and want to be served to-go,” she said. “But
in the past couple months it’s beginning to
come back, where some people aren’t afraid
to go as long as they’re wearing their masks,
and you try to abide by all those rules.”
Like other commercial establishments,
Hildebrandt’s closed its dining room temporarily
in March when COVID-19 cases
started spiking. March dragged into April.
OPPOSITE: Hildebrandt’s in Augusta. [MICHAEL HOLAHAN/THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
1736magazine.com | 19

Luanne Hildebrandt, right, makes a sandwich with some help from Lauren Heddy on a January afternoon at Hildebrandt’s.
[MICHAEL HOLAHAN, THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
“We had to hang on, had to let a few
people go in March, and then they chose
not to come back because money was
better for them to stay home, if you know
what I mean,” Hildebrandt said. “But
we’ve been hanging in there most every
day.”
In mid-May, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp
eased restaurants’ customer limits so 10
people at a time could dine on the premises.
By that time, staffers had spent an
entire weekend conducting a deep cleaning
of the entire deli and rearranging tables
and chairs to accommodate social distancing
requirements.
Most of the time the lunch rush didn’t
pose a problem, but at least once an
employee notified Hildebrandt that the
dining area already had reached its limit. “I
told her when it gets to two more, tell ‘em
they can’t come in,” she said.
Because of the reshuffling, Luanne
Hildebrandt’s “office” that typically
stayed near the front of the store had to
move “back where they used to call ‘the
community table,’ where everybody sat at
one big table for when it was groceries up
front and shelves,” she said.
Nearly a year later, she’s still trying to
tidy that new office, reluctant to move it
again.
“I’m not going to put it upstairs because
I’ll never see it again,” she said with a
laugh.
The second floor of Hildebrandt’s is
scattered with more than a century’s
worth of memories. Nicholas Hildebrandt
emigrated from Germany and opened his
grocery in 1879. The original building no
longer stands, but the current building at a
corner of Sixth and Ellis streets is the one
he built in 1896.
20 | 1736magazine.com

Though Hildebrandt’s started making its signature sandwiches in the
1950s, the grocery also ran a delicatessen since at least 1913. This ad in
The Augusta Chronicle is from 1917, the year before the flu pandemic
first hit Augusta. [FILE, THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
When Nicholas returned to Germany in
the early 1900s, he sold the business to his
nephew, also named Nicholas.
One day in 1908, a young lady named Edna
Mohrmann walked into Hildebrandt’s, having
graduated with honors the day before from
Tubman High School, and asked for a job.
A year later, she and young Nicholas were
married.
For the next several decades, the couple
conducted business on the first floor. In their
home on the second floor, they reared eight
children. Louis, the oldest son and Luanne’s
father, was born in 1914.
Four years later, the flu pandemic stormed
into Augusta.
In September 1918, a train from Camp
Grant in Illinois delivered more than 3,000
Army troops to Fort Gordon’s predecessor,
Camp Hancock, according to the book “The
Great Influenza” by John M. Barry. Hundreds
of soldiers had to be hospitalized immediately
after arriving.
By October, historian Edward J. Cashin
wrote in “The Story of Augusta,” the camp
had hospitalized 3,000 men, and 52 died in
just one week.
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22 | 1736magazine.com

The Hildebrandt family
photographed circa
1929 in Augusta, Ga.
[COURTESY OF LUANNE
HILDEBRANDT]
1736magazine.com | 23

Parents worried about their children, and
the Hildebrandts already had four. Louis
was just 4 years old. His younger brother,
Luanne’s Uncle Billy, was just a few months
old. His older sisters were 9 and 6. The following
spring, as a third wave of the flu swept
across the country, Louis’ mother would
become pregnant with twins.
“One time this past summer my brother,
who was in the hospital at the time, said
something about it,” Hildebrandt said. “He
said Louis told him there were just caskets
piled up everywhere, and I thought, ‘How
would he know that? He was only 4 years
old.’ Maybe he heard stories.”
In Augusta’s close-knit German community
a century ago, strong family ties
could help sustain businesses. Across from
Hildebrandt’s was a meat market run by
Dietrich Timm – the D. Timm Building still
stands today. A Timm married a member
of Augusta’s Marschalk family, and later a
Marschalk married a Hildebrandt. All three
families had emigrated from the same community
in northern Germany – Kührstedt,
just a few miles east of the coastal city of
Bremerhaven.
Running Hildebrandt’s sometimes was a
multifamily affair. Dr. Frederick Marschalk,
now a retired Augusta pulmonologist, worked
at the store as a delivery boy under Louis.
When Louis died in 1993, Luanne
Hildebrandt said, “if anybody was going
to continue the business it was up to me,
and there were some lean years there inbetween.”
Marschalk was one of the cousins
who stepped in “to help me configure and
so forth,” she said, which in 1998 included
tackling the second-floor living space in a
cleanup.
It also included shifting the store’s traditional
focus away from groceries for the first
time in 120 years, “because I was still trying
to hang onto the groceries, and that wasn’t
happening,” she said.
When Marschalk retired, Hildebrandt
recalled “they said, ‘What are you going to
do?’ He said, ‘Well I’m going to Hildebrandt’s
to work,’ and so I did put him to work for a
couple of years. He was just a volunteer. His
heart was in the right place.”
When the U.S. Small Business
Administration extended paycheck protection
program loans to establishments hit
hard by COVID-19, Hildebrandt’s applied
24 | 1736magazine.com

Bob and Flo Morris check out
the menu at Hildebrandt’s.
[MICHAEL HOLAHAN/THE
AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
1736magazine.com | 25

“We had to hang on, had to let a few people go in March, and
then they chose not to come back because money was better for
them to stay home, if you know what I mean. But we’ve been
hanging in there most every day.”
— Luanne Hildebrandt
Tea, lemonade and water await the next thirsty customer at Hildebrandt’s. [MICHAEL HOLAHAN/THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
and got $8,000.
The store’s staff has never been
particularly large, and even after seeing
some workers go, “three or four” are still
employed, Hildebrandt said. “I’ve got
someone who only comes a couple days
a week because another one’s in school,
and they don’t all work at the same
time.”
The number of daily diners still is
“down a bit,” she said.
While she moves the family business
through a second pandemic, Hildebrandt
said she doesn’t remember relatives
discussing that first pandemic.
“My brother Luer Henry, who died
in September, he was the historian. He
could’ve told you anything,” she said.
“Looking back, you wish you could talk
to them now.”
26 | 1736magazine.com

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‘IT MEANS
EVERYTHING
TO ME’
New restaurant opens in downtown Augusta
By JOZSEF PAPP
Antoine Williamson has been wanting to open his
own restaurant for years. Although COVID-19
delayed his opening plans for almost a year, he was
finally able to realize his dream.
“It means everything to me. I saved up for
years,” he said.
Williamson recently opened Broad Street Bullies Grill at 855
Broad St., next to Augusta Common. He said he used to work
extra shifts at Bridgestone, before getting laid off, just to get
more money and save for his restaurant.
He originally planned to open in February, but the pandemic
hit and he had to deal with many delays and problems.
28 | 1736magazine.com

Antoine Williamson opened Broad Street Bullies
Grill at 855 Broad St. In early December.
[MICHAEL HOLAHAN/THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
1736magazine.com | 29

Owner Antoine Williamson said it took about a year to remodel the Broad Street Bullies Grill. [MICHAEL HOLAHAN/THE AUGUSTA
CHRONICLE]
“It was paperwork, supplies,
contractors. I had some contractors
that they would just call me, ‘Hey,
I’m in quarantine for two weeks.’
Two weeks is a big deal because two
weeks (goes) on three weeks, that’s
almost a month of stuff just not
getting done,” he said.
He officially opened the restaurant
with a soft opening Dec. 11
and has been a hit since, with more
than 1,000 people liking its page on
Facebook. He said the support has
meant a lot.
“It’s been great,” he said “A
lot of people came just because it
was a new restaurant, gave us a
try, gave us good reviews, gave us
their critiques, it was a wonderful
experience.”
He has been catering since he
was 18 but it was mostly barbecue.
Now, his menu consists of a variety
of foods including steak, shrimp,
fish, chicken and potatoes.
The most popular items have
Trio potato with shrimp, steak and chicken is one of the items served at Broad Street
Bullies Grill. [ANTOINE WILLIAMSON]
been the Surf and Turf Fries, which
is a big plate of french fries, mozzarella
cheese, grilled steak and
grilled shrimp. Customers have also
liked the buffalo ranch chicken,
three-meat bully platter and many
other items on the menu.
Williamson said it took him
about a year to remodel the location
before opening. While remodeling,
30 | 1736magazine.com

he noticed a lot of people would go
to events at Augusta Common, so he
is hopeful that once things get back
to normal and there are more events
downtown, more people will eat at his
restaurant.
“I was down here every day I was
off work. They had so many events
down at the Common, it made me very
happy to be down here, and I can’t
wait until we get back to normal,” he
said. “I can’t wait until COVID is over
and the (Augusta) Common area opens
back up.”
Williamson felt downtown was the
perfect spot for his restaurant. He is
hopeful for the future of downtown
and is excited to see the area continue
to grow.
“This is really the only area with
(foot) traffic for our city, and a lot
of people visit downtown sometime
eventually during the week,” he said.
“I think when they come downtown,
they’ll start coming to my spot a little
bit more.”
The Surf and Turf fries are one of the most
popular items at Broad Street Bullies Grill.
[ANTOINE WILLIAMSON]
1736magazine.com | 31

Changing Faces founder Patricia Johnson
shows a visitor around the Changing Up
Thrift Store, a for-profit arm of her charity.
The store opened with help from a downtown
businessman who weathered the pandemic.
[JOE HOTCHKISS/THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
32 | 1736magazine.com

Downtown Augusta
expected to grow
after COVID
By JOE HOTCHKISS
1736magazine.com | 33

The coronavirus
pandemic was
one of the worst
things to happen
to Richard Green’s
business.
It also was one of the best things
to happen to it.
Green’s economic roller-coaster
ride could help explain why downtown
Augusta seemed to bend
but not break under the stress of
COVID-19’s deadly spread.
Margaret Woodard, the executive
director of the Augusta Downtown
Development Authority, sees a
strong business community downtown
that will “only get stronger.”
“Once people got over the initial
shock of ‘What the heck has happened
to us?’ they were able to
shift,” she said.
Green’s shift began in December
2019 while China wrestled with
COVID-19. His business, initially,
was electronic recycling.
“The pandemic started impacting
us a little bit sooner than it did
everybody else because of electronics
— it all comes from China.
There’s just no way around it,”
Green said. “All the actual electronic
waste ends up going back
there, too.”
In March, he moved his business,
Tech 4 Success, from a
15,000-square-foot warehouse on
New Savannah Road to a storefront
in the 900 block of Broad Street,
intending to reduce his climbing
electric bill.
That same month, COVID-19’s
effects started shutting down
Georgia businesses. For months
afterward, the only commerce
Green could conduct was through
his eBay store online. Behind his
closed storefront, he packaged and
shipped orders.
Bills started piling up, even after
his landlord granted rent forgiveness.
“So we had to make a choice,”
he said.
Opportunity knocked. With
many people homebound, Green
said, there was a huge increase in
the need for computers.
“That also meant there was a
huge increase in the amount of
people who needed computer
repair,” he said. “The vast majority
of the people who bought from
us online were computer repair
shops. We had a hard time keeping
in stock.”
Business got so good, Green
ran out of inventory in October
and November. Seeing the surge
in computer-repair demand, he
branched into computer repair,
too. He also performs security
camera installations and is looking
into providing wireless internet
services.
“So I’m being run ragged basically,
going back and forth place
to place, doing estimates, trying
to figure out how to set their stuff
up,” Green said.
Initial forecasts from agencies
such as Main Street America and
the U.S. Small Business Administration
predicted that 30% or
more of small businesses wouldn’t
survive the pandemic.
“And you start thinking what
your downtown would look like,”
Woodard said. “For example, from
13th Street to Seventh Street there
are 258 small businesses. So do the
math if 30% of those close down.”
But between regular checks
throughout the pandemic with
business owners and developers,
and a mid-December “windshield
tour” of local businesses, Woodard
said downtown actually saw a net
gain of businesses.
“If these trends continue, we feel
the small businesses that make up
the majority of our district pivoted
quickly and came up with creative
solutions to keep their doors open,”
she said.
The retail consulting firm
NextSite conducted a “customer
journey analysis” of downtown
Augusta throughout 2019 and 2020.
Richard Green experienced
some lean months at his
downtown computer business
during the COVID-19 pandemic,
but now customers are coming
back. [JOE HOTCHKISS/THE
AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
34 | 1736magazine.com

We have a partnership agreement for electronics recycling. If anyone brings
computers to us, it’ll go through The Clubhou.se as a donation, and if it’s a good
working computer, we’re trying to do it where we refurbish them and then they go
to a child in need who needs it for school.
RICHARD GREEN | OWNER, TECH 4 SUCCESS
1736magazine.com | 35

By capturing and studying the
movement of residents’ cellphones,
Woodard said, interesting patterns
emerged showing visitors’ habits.
Some traits didn’t change despite
the pandemic. Hourly visits to
downtown still generally peaked
at mealtimes, and daily visits
peaked on weekends, according to
NextSite. Most visitors still come
from a 30-mile radius.
There were about 1 million fewer
visits to downtown in 2020 than
2019. But the average number of
visits didn’t change much. In 2019,
a customer would visit downtown
4.49 times a year. During the
pandemic, despite a sharp drop in
the number of visits between mid-
March and mid-May, a customer
averaged 4.07 visits, the NextSite
report said.
The number of visitors expectedly
went down. While about 727,600
people came downtown in 2019,
only about 558,100 did last year.
There also weren’t the traditional
spikes in visitor numbers, seen
typically around St. Patrick’s Day,
the Fourth of July, Christmas, and
in the fall when the city plays host
to its Ironman competition and the
Arts in the Heart and Westobou
festivals.
“The traffic is still down, but
not nearly as down as it was at
the beginning of the pandemic,”
Woodard said. “People are returning
downtown but not just at
capacity.”
Another interesting aberration,
Woodard said: In the first few
monthly reports during the pandemic,
downtown would see visitor
spikes on Tuesdays, “because
people were just tired of being at
home,” she said. “They’d be sheltered
in place, and they picked up
curbside.”
Curbside service was one of the
tweaks to city ordinances designed
to help keep businesses running.
Other changes allowed more seating
for customers on sidewalks.
More recently, the Augusta Com-
The new Hyatt House Hotel in downtown Augusta. [MICHAEL HOLAHAN/THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
36 | 1736magazine.com

The Georgia Cyber Center in downtown Augusta. [SPECIAL]
mission voted to relax requirements
on alcohol licenses.
Some business owners moved
forward with downtown openings
at various stages of the pandemic,
taking advantage of Georgia’s policies
on business reopenings that
were less stringent than those in
other parts of the nation.
Pineapple Ink Tavern closed
almost as soon as it opened in
March, but reopened later in the
year. Laziza Mediterranean Grill
opened its second downtown location
in November. Broad Street
Bullies Grill opened on Broad
Street’s 800 block. Florist Blanc
Flora opened on the 500 block.
Grantski’s Records and Southern
Stone Imports, a countertop and
tile retailer, opened on the 1200
block.
Other businesses changed the
way they did business. The Book
Tavern, heavily reliant on foot
traffic, began marketing and selling
“surprise care packages” of books
and other items targeted at people
sheltering in place. Keen Sign and
Graphics began manufacturing
sneeze guards. At 2nd City Distilling
Co., hand sanitizer went into
production.
Businesses even helped other
businesses. The promotional products
supplier Showpony helped
start a campaign that produced
T-shirts bearing local businesses’
logos, then sold the shirts to earn
proceeds helping those businesses.
“I think once everybody put
their political views aside and said,
‘We’ve got to do this,’ I felt like
there was a real esprit de corps,”
Woodard said. “There was a group
of people who were doing everything
they could.”
There are several projects underway
to bring more apartments
downtown, such as in the historic
Commerce Building at Broad and
Seventh streets, and in a Greene
Street building dating to the 19th
century that used to be a grocery
store, Woodard said.
“And we’re just now being able
to start conversations again with
outside developers who are looking
at sites,” she said. “They’re starting
to come back.”
The city’s largest industry sectors
and a growing residential
community downtown afforded
small businesses a further layer of
protection, Woodard said. Medical,
cyber, military – employers
that didn’t or couldn’t shut down
because of the pandemic – kept a
window open for reliable consumer
bases. Serious commercial hardship,
she said, didn’t last very long.
“This window here was very
1736magazine.com | 37

Broad Street looking west
in downtown Augusta.
[MICHAEL HOLAHAN/THE
AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
bleak, but it was very short,” she
said.
At Tech 4 Success, Green said
there were times early in the pandemic
when he “actually sat here
and watched paint dry on the wall
for hours.” Today, he can barely
keep up with demand.
When he ran out of inventory last
fall, he still had several computers
he was reluctant to disassemble
but wanted to resell. He found a
solution with a local nonprofit that
helped him get into business and
helps other entrepreneurs – The
Clubhou.se.
“We have a partnership agreement
for electronics recycling,” he
said. “If anyone brings computers
to us, it’ll go through The Clubhou.
se as a donation, and if it’s a good
working computer, we’re trying to
do it where we refurbish them and
then they go to a child in need who
needs it for school.”
Just a couple of doors down from
Green’s shop is a corner shop at
Ninth and Broad streets that used
to be his computer sales floor.
Now it’s another active storefront
– a thrift store he helped open,
operated by another nonprofit,
Changing Faces. The store, which
helps raise money for the charity’s
mission of paying for housing
and food, also sells his refurbished
computers. Down the road with
Changing Faces, he hopes to provide
accredited computer literacy
classes for transient foster youth
and for technologically-challenged
seniors.
“We do a lot of this,” Green said,
then chuckled. “We probably do
too much.” But it keeps him busy.
“It’s a huge change from just two
months ago. It is a welcome change,
I will say that.”
38 | 1736magazine.com

An artist’s rendering shows the proposed new James Brown Arena and Bell Auditorium entertainment complex. [IMAGE COURTESY OF PERKINS & WILL]
Arena, deck, depot on
downtown SPLOST 8 list
By SUSAN MCCORD
The projects aren’t
all glamorous, but
nearly 30% of special
purpose, local option
sales tax 8 project
funds will go into downtown
Augusta.
After planning was postponed
last year due to COVID-19, the
$250 million sales tax package
appears by itself on the March 16
ballot, with advance voting starting
Feb. 22.
The priciest downtown item is
$25 million for a new James Brown
Arena at the site of the current
arena on Seventh Street.
The funds will go toward
Augusta-Richmond County
Coliseum Authority’s plan for a
$228-million-plus complex able to
seat more than 10,000, with a wing
connecting it to Bell Auditorium.
Adding a parking deck would cost
another $18.5 million, project planners
said.
“While not every proposed
project made the cut, I believe that
SPLOST 8 represents much-needed
projects that will move Augusta
forward,” Mayor Hardie Davis said
of the package.
Another $16.5 million from the
1% sales tax will go to an existing
facility, the Georgia Cyber Center
parking garage. The city built the
deck as its contribution to the
Cyber Center and the $16.5 million
will retire debt on the project.
The package includes $14 million
to redevelop the riverfront “Depot”
property, a historic train station at
Fifth and Reynolds streets.
The site was eyed by the Augusta
Downtown Development Authority
for a large mixed-use complex of
apartments, retail and office space,
but a deal negotiated by the DDA
with Alabama developer BLOC
Global fell through early last year.
Not included in the package were
requests by Augusta Museum of
History for a James Brown wing,
Augusta Jewish Museum and a
1736magazine.com | 39

The Augusta-Richmond County Coliseum Authority’s plan for a $228-million-plus James Brown Arena complex would seat more than 10,000, with a wing
connecting it to Bell Auditorium. The priciest downtown item in the special purpose, local option sales tax 8 project up for approval is $25 million for a new
James Brown Arena at the site of the current arena on Seventh Street. [IMAGES COURTESY OF PERKINS & WILL]
proposed military museum to
be located at the old Richmond
Academy building.
With the bulk of Augusta’s
blighted properties located in and
around downtown, the package
includes $4 million for blight mitigation,
such as replacing blighted
structures.
Projects that could benefit downtown
include the list’s $23.5 million
for road resurfacing, $20 million to
supplement the stormwater utility
fee for grading and drainage projects
and funding for tree, sidewalk and
traffic system work.
Projects on the SPLOST 8 list
that aren’t downtown include
$5 million in seed money for a
regional water park and $11 million
to replace the Richmond County
Correctional Institute.
On the list for downtown is
$500,000 for video security
“enhancements,” possibly supplementing
Richmond County
Sheriff’s Office surveillance and
$600,000 for maintenance of three
city cemeteries – Magnolia and
Cedar Grove downtown, as well as
Westview near Lake Olmstead.
The package includes $5.5 million
for a juvenile justice and training
center, the brainchild of Chief
Superior Court Judge Carl C. Brown.
Columbia County’s recent decision
to leave the Augusta Judicial
Circuit could impact the project but
its proposed location is at the Craig
Houghton School or the former Joint
Law Enforcement Center, both of
which are downtown.
40 | 1736magazine.com

WHILE NOT
EVERY PROPOSED
PROJECT MADE THE
CUT, I BELIEVE
THAT SPLOST 8
REPRESENTS MUCH-
NEEDED PROJECTS
THAT WILL MOVE
AUGUSTA FORWARD.
MAYOR HARDIE DAVIS
1736magazine.com | 41

Funding fades, but Augusta
museum projects stay
The former Court of Ordinary building, which is adjacent to the former Children of Israel Synagogue on Telfair Street, would house
exhibits and memorabilia to help present the history, legacy and struggles of the Jewish people as the Augusta Jewish Museum.
[MICHAEL HOLAHAN/THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
By JOE HOTCHKISS
Downtown Augusta
doesn’t have a “cultural
corridor” yet
– but a door to it has
been opened.
The idea, conceived by downtown
business and civic leaders, is to
emphasize the proximity of several
downtown museums and market
them to visitors as a single attraction
that showcases art and history.
And like the future of so many
other projects, its progress boils
down to money.
Downtown boasts several
museums already. The Augusta
Museum of History and the Morris
Museum of Art are the largest.
Smaller attractions, such as the
Gertrude Herbert Institute of Art
and the Boyhood Home of Woodrow
Wilson, are housed in historic
buildings that contribute to their
tourism cachet.
The Augusta Commission met
late last year to decide how money
would be allocated in the eighth
iteration of the government’s special-purpose
local option sales tax.
Backers of more than 100 public or
private projects submitted requests
to receive part of the $250 million
that’s expected to be spent over the
42 | 1736magazine.com

next six or seven years.
Three museum projects jockeyed
for position among the requests.
The Augusta Museum of History
asked for $7 million to build a new
wing dedicated solely to legendary
entertainer James Brown. The
museum’s already-considerable
exhibit lacks the space to include
vast amounts of Brown memorabilia
still in storage, and other space
would provide a home for the youth
music initiative of the James Brown
Family Foundation.
Independent filmmaker Brendan
Thompson of Nashville, Tenn.,
requested $2 million to turn the
old Academy of Richmond County
building on Telfair Street into a
Georgia Museum of Military History.
Thompson, a former U.S. Air
Force cryptologic specialist, visited
Augusta on a film shoot and became
intrigued by the distinctive building
whose earliest parts date to 1802
and its potential as a museum, given
that it’s already a national landmark.
Organizers of the Augusta Jewish
Museum requested more than $3.5
million to help complete the refurbishment
of the former Children of
Israel Synagogue on Telfair Street
and the adjacent former Court of
Ordinary building. Both buildings
date to the 1860s, and would house
exhibits and memorabilia to help
present the history, legacy and
struggles of the Jewish people. The
building is the oldest in Georgia
constructed as a synagogue.
In December, the commission
rejected all three museum requests.
“It was a great, great, great
concept. And the mayor was behind
it. We just couldn’t get the rest of
the commissioners to go for it,”
Super District 10 Commissioner
John Clarke said. “I think the sad
thing about it is, why I was so upset
about it – I pointed this out, and
there are still a little bit peeved at
me for pointing this out but I don’t
care – they’re always talking about
tourism, economic development,
whatever. This would’ve been a
great cultural thing.”
Clarke said he proposed a
“Museum Row” that could lead
visitors on a journey through downtown
that could last one or two
days, with an admission pass that
could be purchased at any participating
museum or at the Augusta
Convention and Visitors Bureau on
Broad Street.
An extended tour, he said, could
begin at the Augusta Museum of
History then move to the Morris
Museum, then the Jewish Museum,
the Military Museum, the Herbert
Institute, the Wilson House and
the Lucy Craft Laney Museum of
Black History. It could then turn up
toward the Augusta Canal Discovery
Center, the 1797 Ezekiel Harris
House and historic Springfield Baptist
Church, with a park across the
street that marks one of the area’s
first Black settlements.
“And then wrap it up with a latte
at the Dime Museum of Oddities,”
Clarke said, referring to Pexcho's
American Dime Museum on Sixth
Street, across from the tour’s starting
point.
Instead, a majority of commissioners
voted to allocate money
toward proposals such as a water
park, which Clarke said should
be a privately-funded venture,
and several road improvement
and stormwater projects, which
Clarke contends are funded already
through existing taxes.
But nongovernmental organizations,
Clarke said, got short shrift.
“We didn't want to go for anything
cultural that would be an economic
development driving force,” he
said.
With the SPLOST avenue of
funding off the table, the only one
of the three museum projects with
the soonest likelihood of completion
has already started. Backers of
the Augusta Jewish Museum fully
expect to open its first exhibits by
July 1 – fulfilling a promise made to
the city several years ago.
Congregation Children of Israel
moved its worship from the synagogue
on Telfair to a new temple
on Walton Way. The grand Greek
Revival-style building then became
offices for the city’s Planning and
Zoning Department.
That was attorney Nathan Jolles’
first exposure to the old synagogue.
Family ties to the building run deep,
with relatives holding worship services,
bar mitzvahs and weddings
there. By the time he first remembers
setting foot in the building, it
was very different.
“I would go down there to get
plats approved, surveys approved,
and I’d walk in the building. It was
really interesting,” said Jolles, who
also is vice president of the AJM’s
board of directors. “I’d walk up the
stairs, get to the top and go into the
entrance, and think, ‘This is the
building that meant so much to my
family.’ ”
By 2015, city officials were planning
to bulldoze the 150-year-old
synagogue and court buildings to
make room for parking spaces and
greenspace. When news of those
plans reached local accountant
Jack Steinberg, he became a regular
fixture at Augusta Commission
meetings to plead the case for sparing
the buildings to use as a Jewish
museum.
“He went there for a year to the
commission and begged for a way to
do it, and they turned him down,”
said Jack Weinstein, president of the
AJM’s board of directors. “Finally
one day – I was there when it happened
– they said ‘You get five years
to open a museum or we’re tearing it
down.’ At that time the whole audience
got up and clapped, so happy.
And it wasn’t just Jewish people. It
was people in Augusta, Ga.”
Among the museum’s 14 board
members are Historic Augusta
Executive Director Erick Montgomery
and Lewis Smith, director of
1736magazine.com | 43

44 | 1736magazine.com

the McDuffie Museum in Thomson.
Through individual donations and
grants from local and state foundations,
about $600,000 so far has
been spent toward transforming the
two buildings into a museum.
Donations have ranged in size
from $25,000 to a woman’s sincere
check for $2, Weinstein said.
“We had a booth at Arts in the
Heart two years ago and people
came by and said, ‘Where is it? We
want to go see it.’ ”
The first visitors are expected to
see the museum’s Education Center,
which will be housed in the old court
building, built in the 1860s as one of
the city’s first “fireproof” buildings
to house public records. Carpeting
was expected to be completed by
the end of January, but the court’s
original floor is expected to be preserved
also.
Other interior renovations are onschedule
to accommodate an opening
by July 1, Weinstein said. The
museum is being planned around
four educational pillars: Holocaust
remembrance; Jewish heritage and
traditions; the nation of Israel; and
Jewish contributions to the Augusta
area.
Jewish tradition, and the local
business leaders who embraced
it, “really is an important part of
Augusta,” Weinstein said. “Downtown
wouldn’t have been developed
The James Brown exhibit at the Augusta
Museum of History gives fans a taste of
the man and his music. The museum is
looking to expand the space dedicated
to Brown’s life in order to include
more items that are in storage. [JACKIE
RICCIARDI/THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
1736magazine.com | 45

The old Academy of Richmond County building on Telfair Street could be the site for a Georgia Museum of Military History.
[MICHAEL HOLAHAN/THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
without it.”
The top floor of the larger synagogue
building will serve as a smallerscale
event space similar to the larger
Sacred Heart Cultural Center, another
local rehabilitated house of worship,
“and will be set up just like the synagogue
was in 1869,” he said.
“It’s taken an enormous amount of
work from everybody. I’m very proud
of what we've done so far,” Weinstein
said.
Other museum projects are at different
stages. A James Brown wing for
the Augusta Museum of History, or a
wing highlighting several local entertainment
personalities, has been discussed
at varying levels since at least
2008. Even with its most recent denial
of SPLOST funding, the proposed
project is unlikely to be abandoned.
Thompson is still advocating for a
Georgia Museum of Military History.
He said in late January that he
still is meeting with commissioners
to discuss options for advancing that
project.
“We were of course surprised to
hear that our proposal will not be
included on SPLOST,” he said. “We
were always going to raise funds
outside of our stand-up budget, so
nothing has changed in regards to our
board of directors and current commitments.”
District 2 Commissioner Dennis
Williams has ‘committed' to help find
public funds for the military museum,
and District 4 Commissioner Sammie
Sias, a retired U.S. Army command
sergeant major, has expressed interest
after a “very positive phone meeting,”
according to Thompson.
“We are very optimistic that we
can find more partners to collaborate
on securing funds for realizing the
enormous potential of our proposed
museum,” Thompson said.
Clarke said he and others are looking
into the possibility of using unspent
or unclaimed funds from previous
completed SPLOST projects to further
an Augusta cultural corridor.
“That money can be re-designated.
So there are a couple of us looking
at that, exploring that avenue,”
he said.
46 | 1736magazine.com

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‘FULL STEAM
AHEAD’
Officials aim for 2022 start on
James Brown Arena project
By SUSAN MCCORD
48 | 1736magazine.com

Augusta’s plans
to replace James
Brown Arena with
a state-of-the-art
facility with the
same name are “full-steam ahead,”
said one of the project’s biggest
champions.
“We’ve got our team hired; we
have our project manager who’s
been with us – H.B. Brantley –
the architects are hired and all
the peripheral folks are hired,”
said Brad Usry, vice-chairman
of Augusta-Richmond County
Coliseum Authority.
Brantley, of Atlanta-based
SPACE Venues has worked with
the authority for nearly
a year leading a team that has
developed a detailed market analysis,
design study and traffic study.
The result? In September SPACE
and team members
Hunden Strategic Partners
and Perkins + Will
Architects presented plans
for an arena able to seat
more than 10,000, with
a lower-bowl capacity
of 6,500, 1,050 premium
seats, 12 suites and several
loge boxes.
An artist’s rendering of the proposed
new James Brown Arena and Bell
Auditorium entertainment complex.
[COURTESY OF PERKINS & WILL]
1736magazine.com | 49

Artist’s renderings show the proposed new James Brown
Arena and Bell Auditorium entertainment complex.
[IMAGES COURTESY OF PERKINS & WILL]
Inspired by diagonals, such as
Brown’s microphone stand and a
golf swing, the 10-story arena is
capped with a pentagonal dome
and will be joined with the Bell
Auditorium by shared office,
kitchen and other space.
Its $228 million price tag does
not include adding an $18.5 million
parking deck, $16.7 million ballroom
or $4 million ice system.
The project will get a jump-start
if voters approve special purpose
local option sales tax 8, which
appears on the March 16 ballot
includes $25 million for the arena.
The authority also is using $8
million it recouped from refinancing
an earlier project for which it issued
bonds – the Augusta Marriott at the
Convention Center parking garage –
to get the project rolling, Usry said.
“That will take us to the point
of where we’ll put a shovel in the
ground, which we’re hoping will be
a year from now,” Usry said.
The authority will continue the
important process of securing
buy-in by the public as it prepares a
bond issue for the remaining funds
to place on the November ballot,
Usry said.
50 | 1736magazine.com

Money to build a replacement for the James Brown
Arena in Augusta goes before voters in March.
[MICHAEL HOLAHAN/THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
WWW.MEYBOHMCOMMERCIAL.COM
1736magazine.com | 51

52 | 1736magazine.com
New Savannah Bluff Lock
and Dam. [FILE/STAFF]

Augusta riverfront, Lock and Dam
future unclear
By TOM CORWIN
Although the legal battle
continues, Augusta's
riverfront is safe for
now.
Augusta, North
Augusta and South Carolina have
been battling the U.S. Army Corps
of Engineers over its plan to remove
New Savannah Bluff Lock and
Dam and replace it with a rock
weir fish passage that would allow
endangered Atlantic and shortnose
sturgeon to reach traditional
spawning grounds near Augusta
currently blocked by the structure.
The fish passage is part of the
mitigation the Corps must perform
to make up for damage to
the habitat for those fish in the
Savannah River caused by the
Savannah Harbor Expansion
Project as it deepens that port to
accommodate larger ships.
But more than 100 miles away,
the plan would also lower the pool
of water in the Savannah River
along the prized riverfronts in
Augusta and North Augusta, which
the Corps maintains is necessary
so that the new structure doesn't
cause nuisance flooding.
Just how low it would go became
clear in a simulation the Corps
performed in February 2019,
which left submerged hazards in
the river exposed and left muddy
flats with docks and boats sitting
on the ground across North
Augusta. The already unpopular
plan sparked howls of outrage on
both sides of the river even as the
Corps proceeded to implement it
and eventually the state of South
Carolina sued to stop it, joined by
the City of Augusta.
The heart of their argument is
that the plan violates the Water
Infrastructure Improvements
for the Nation Act of 2016 that
required the pool be maintained at
the level it was when the law was
passed in December 2016. While
the law allows the Corps to deauthorize
and remove the crumbling
1736magazine.com | 53

Since its completion in 1937, the New Savannah Bluff Lock and Dam has played a role in fostering growth and progress on both sides of the Savannah River.
[MICHAEL HOLAHAN/THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
lock and dam for a fish passage it
also must "maintain the pool for
navigation, water supply, and recreational
activities, as in existence
on the date of enactment of this
Act," which proponents point out
was 114.5 feet above sea level, well
above what the Corps' plan would
provide.
U.S. District Court Judge Richard
Mark Gergel agreed that the Corps'
plan violated that provision of
the law and issued a permanent
injunction, which the Corps is now
appealing.
Advocates hope that his ruling
will allow time for the cities and
their leadership, as well as industries
that rely on the pool, to lobby
Congress to provide the funds to
repair the lock and dam, which was
Augusta, North Augusta and South Carolina have been battling the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
over its plan to remove New Savannah Bluff Lock and Dam. [MICHAEL HOLAHAN/THE AUGUSTA
CHRONICLE]
54 | 1736magazine.com

The locks give manmade control over the Savannah River’s upstream pool,
which includes three reservoirs – Strom Thurmond, Russell and Hartwell
lakes. [MICHAEL HOLAHAN/THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
completed in 1937, and thus maintain the pool of
water, and all that those riverfronts provide.
U.S. Rep. Rick Allen, R-Ga., said recently
the hope is to provide a strong voice in the next
Congress to secure the future for the pool and
the riverfronts through an alternative plan that
the Corps would then have to implement.
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1736magazine.com | 55

56 | 1736magazine.com
New Savannah
Bluff Lock and Dam
dedicated in June 1937

Guests and
dignitaries stand
on the steamboat
Wiley L. Moore
at the New
Savannah Bluff
Lock and Dam
for its dedication
ceremony on
June 26, 1937.
Augustans gather along the
5th Street watch to send off
the steamboat Wiley L. Moore
carrying dignitaries on June 26,
1937. Dr. Eugene Murphey gave
the dedication.
Guests and dignitaries load onto
the snagboat Macon and its
barge along the 5th Street wharf
in downtown Augusta to take
the 14-mile journey down the
Savannah River.
Augustans stand along the
Savannah River leeway and
watch the steamboat Wiley E.
Moore make its way toward the
New Savannah Bluff Lock and
Dam on June 26, 1937. [STAFF]
1736magazine.com | 57

58 | 1736magazine.com

The snagboat Macon docks at the New Savannah Bluff Lock and Dam on June 26, 1937. [STAFF]
The $2 million New Savannah Bluff Lock and Dam was dedicated June 26, 1937, Maj. General
Thomas Q. Ashburn predicted a “very pleasant future for the Savannah River and its surrounding
territory.” Guests and dignitaries arrive on the steamboat Wiley L. Moore at the New Savannah
Bluff Lock and Dam for its dedication ceremony.
Hundreds of people stood along the river
levee and cheered as the procession
from the wharf near the 5th Street
Bridge meandered toward the new Lock
and Dam.
1736magazine.com | 59

The snagboat
Macon and its
barge arrive for
the festivities to
dedicate the New
Savannah Bluff
Lock and Dam in
June 1937.
Guests and
dignitaries stand
on the steamboat
Wiley L. Moore at
the New Savannah
Bluff Lock and Dam
for its dedication
ceremony on June
26, 1937.
60 | 1736magazine.com

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ARTISTS DISCUSS AUGUSTA
SCULPTURE TRAIL WORKS
By MIGUEL LEGOAS
Downtown Augusta has been
decorated with 11 new sculptures
that range from colorful and silly
to elegant and complex.
The sculptures are spread out across
the downtown area as part of a new
Sculpture Trail by the Greater Augusta
Arts Council. Executive Director Brenda
Durant said the idea is to spur economic
development downtown, pride in the
community and give people another
reason to visit downtown.
64 | 1736magazine.com

ABOVE: “Invasive,” by Jen Garrett of Gainesville, Fla., can be found at the Augusta Common near Broad Street. [MIGUEL LEGOAS/THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
OPPOSITE: Find “Orion,” by David Sheldon from Nashville, Tenn., near Eighth and Broad streets. [MICHAEL HOLAHAN/THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
The sculptures will be on loan
for two years and available for
purchase.
The artists explain their creations
and the inspirations behind
them.
“What a Wonderful World,”
by Leonard Ursachi of New York
City, depicts Earth in the shape of
an egg, which he said represents
the importance of home and how
fragile a home can be. The small
opening is meant to resemble that
of a bunker or refuge, and the
mirror inside is meant to inspire
self-reflection. The piece is made
of branches, stainless steel and
pigmented cement. It is located in
front of the Riverwalk.
“Invasive” by Jen Garrett of
“Duet,” by Gregory Johnson of North Georgia, deposits abstract swans at the Augusta
Common near Reynolds Street. [MIGUEL LEGOAS/THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
1736magazine.com | 65

ABOVE: “Maestro,” left, and “Forever Young” are a pair of sculptures by Larry Schueckler of
College Station, Texas. The duo can be found located near Eighth and Broad streets.
LEFT: “Stepped Tower” by Larry Millard is located in front of the Riverwalk. Millard also created
the Harrisburg Portal sculpture in the Harrisburg community. [PHOTOS BY MIGUEL LEGOAS/THE
AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
Gainesville, Fla., is a pair of steel
flowers that are meant to represent
Garrett’s mother and sister whom
are breast cancer survivors. She
said flowers serve as a symbol of
life and vitality, and the petals are
meant to resemble stained cells
like those used in medical research.
The piece is located at the Augusta
Common near Broad Street.
Harry McDaniel of Asheville,
N.C., sought to turn fasteners,
nuts and bolts into something
more abstract with “Impractical
Hardware.” He said the sculpture
serves as a visual joke because
the hardware is in unique shapes
and have odd angles so they would
never screw into anything. The
piece is made from bronze, aluminum
and steel. It is located near
10th and Broad streets.
Larry Millard of Athens, said
“Stepped Tower” consists of
an elevating structure that gets
smaller as it goes higher. Part of
the message of this piece describes
how, as people move up in life, it
66 | 1736magazine.com

“What a Wonderful World,” by
Leonard Ursachi from New York City,
is located in front of the Riverwalk.
[MIGUEL LEGOAS/THE AUGUSTA
CHRONICLE]
1736magazine.com | 67

“Impractical Hardware,” by Harry McDaniel
from Asheville, N.C., was installed
near 10th and Broad streets. [MICHAEL
HOLAHAN/THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
68 | 1736magazine.com

“Popsicles,” by Craig Gray of Key West, Fla., decorates downtown at the Augusta Common near Reynolds Street. [MIGUEL LEGOAS/THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
can be hard to stay balanced. The sculpture is made
of stainless steel with a special surfacing that Millard
said will create different visuals based on the different
lighting around it. The piece is located in front of
the Riverwalk. Millard also created the Harrisburg
Portal, a sculptural work celebrating the history of
Augusta’s Harrisburg community.
“Sun Lion” by D’jean Jawrunner of Tucumcari,
N.M., is based on the native horned lizard also known
as the ‘horny toad,’ an animal she has always been
intrigued by and one she describes as ‘a friendly soul.’
The bronze sculpture was cast in 11 pieces and welded
together. Jawrunner said, of all her projects, she has
spent more time on this than any other. The piece is
located at the Augusta Common near Broad Street.
“Sun Lion,” by D’jean Jawrunner from Tucumcari, N.M., is a bronze sculpture
located at the Augusta Common. [MIGUEL LEGOAS/THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
1736magazine.com | 69

“Orion” is part of a series by
David Sheldon of Nashville, Tenn.,
called “Skyworks.” He said it came
from his fascination with space
and people’s relationship with
the cosmos. This sculpture was
inspired by the Orion constellation.
Made from painted steel, it’s meant
to communicate motion while
being still. It is located near Eighth
and Broad streets.
Craig Gray, of Key West, Fla.,
said, that while a lot of art has some
bigger meaning or is more than
what it is, he is a straightforward
guy and “Popsicles” is exactly
that: popsicles. As a father of four,
he was inspired by the sweet treat
his children enjoy every summer.
He liked that it’s something relatable
that anyone could enjoy no
matter where the piece is on display.
It’s made of steel, stucco and
wood and is located at the Augusta
Common near Reynolds Street.
Larry Schueckler of College
Station, Texas, is the creator
of a pair of bronze sculptures:
“Maestro” and “Forever
Young.” He said the first is meant
to depict the drama of an artist in
passionate play while the second
is a child giddily waiting to join in,
possibly someone hoping to one day
be the Maestro or even the Maestro
himself thinking about how he got
started in his youth. The pair have
been placed near Eighth and Broad
streets.
“Unstoppable” was created by
husband-and-wife team Gus and
Lina Ocamposilva of Tampa Bay,
Fla. Lina said they wanted to honor
the freedom and perseverance of
the human spirit in this sculpture
and give it a cheerful attitude with
bright colors to remind people to be
children again. The piece is made
of welded aluminum enamels and is
located near 11th and Broad streets.
“Duet,” by Gregory Johnson
of Cumming, GA, is an abstract
depiction of two swans made of
mirrored stainless steel. Johnson
said his neighbor has two swans
Gus and Lina Ocamposilva of Tampa Bay, Fla., want the colors of “Unstoppable” to
remind people to be children again. It’s located 11th and Broad streets. [MICHAEL
HOLAHAN/THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
named Claire and De Lune and he
was inspired by their shape and the
way they float. He said, because
it’s an abstract piece, he invites all
sorts of interpretations and simply
hopes people will want to walk up
and look at it. Find it at the Augusta
Common near Reynolds Street.
70 | 1736magazine.com

FINAL WORDS
Time to
experience
the changes
TONY BERNADOS, PRESIDENT
When we launched this
magazine two years ago,
we knew it would not be
published forever. If we
were able to accomplish
our original mission,
(simply put) the urgent need to assemble would no
longer exist. The mission of the magazine was to
chronicle the rebirth of Augusta’s downtown, to
facilitate a movement among community leaders
and business owners and to hold ourselves and
elected officials accountable to the promise and
evidence of progress.
Over the past 2 years, we have helped you wrap
your arms around the mind-boggling developments
shaping our skyline, introduced you to
countless local influencers that have passionately
and tirelessly navigated through red, white
and blue (and every other color) tape to bring
commerce, dining and entertainment to our
downtown, shared stories of conservationists
protecting our natural resources and history amid
all the change, provided multiple artist renderings
of what our city could, would or should look
like, covered the rise and the fall of pivotal real
estate transactions and in each edition graded
the progression of Public Safety, Government,
Housing, Parking, Development, Infrastructure,
Arts and Culture and finally, Commerce.
Through these pages we have demonstrated
how Augusta has grown from the Garden City to
the Cyber City virtually “busting at the seams”
with potential.
What you may not have known is how farreaching
the magazine became. In addition to
being part of The Augusta Chronicle Sunday
newspaper, the magazine was also mailed to
2,500 C- and V-level executives throughout the
Augusta region, delivered to every site selection
committee in the U.S. and sent to our elected
officials in Atlanta — all in the hopes of sharing
the limitless potential and progress of our
community.
As this final edition tells the story of what was
once old is new again, it is my hope that you not
settle for reading about the progress and development,
rather you experience the change yourself.
If you haven’t ventured downtown lately, what
are you waiting for? If you are waiting for an invitation,
consider yourself invited by all the local
shops, bars and restaurants.
See you there.
1736magazine.com | 71