Fall 2020 - 1736 Magazine

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CHURCH continued from 23 An intricately designed window is seen from inside the old First Baptist Church of Augusta building at the corner of Eighth and Greene streets. “I think that’s a great price,” Edge said. “It would cost you $15 million to replicate this.” Edge is unsure how much money will be tied up in the building’s renovation; architectural and structural engineering reports are still pending, as are applications for state and federal historic-preservation tax credits, which Edge’s firm had never used before. “This is our first go at it,” Edge said. “Go big or go home, right?” For now, Edge is working on a new roof to protect the building from further moisture damage and is cutting back the vines creeping up the exterior walls. He’s also removing the old pews and cleaning out an accumulation of trash brought in by transients, who had been cleverly accessing the building by tethering a pull-rope through a space in the front door to the inside doorknob. Edge said the property will be protected by a security system once power is restored to the building, which over the years has been a target of burglars searching for copper wiring. A utility room housing the church’s electrical switchgear has a wall marked by the outline of a man-sized indentation. “We were told by an electrician that the panel must have arced while the guy was stealing copper and it threw him into the wall,” Edge said, pointing out the cracked wall during a building tour. “That had to hurt.” Though Edge eventually expects to reap a return on his investment, he said his primary intent was to save the historic property from being razed or collapsing on itself – something historic preservationists refer to as “demolition-by-neglect.” Although the building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the designation does not prohibit the owners of listed properties from demolishing the structures. The historic church was facing demolition just five years ago when city officials condemned the building after inspectors found homeless people sleeping under the portico and plaster falling from the ceiling. Edge said he had been negotiating the purchase for the past year to get what he considered to be a fair price for the unique but dilapidated building. Edge said the seller purchased the building to keep it from being demolished, but had no near-term plans to renovate the property to stave off further deterioration. “It took a little pushing to get him to sell it. I think he was banking on getting a little more (money). That’s the problem with a lot of things down here – you’ve got to take the risk and spend the money,” he said. Edge said the property’s significant architecture and historic lineage makes it more than a typical commercial real estate investment. “Normally, if we came across something like this, we would fix it, sell it and make a buck,” Edge said. “But we’ll never sell this building. I fully expect my kids and grandkids to own this one day.” 26 | <strong>1736</strong>magazine.com
Sunday, November 15, <strong>2020</strong> T27
Page 1 and 2: FALL 2020 WATERWAYS EDITION Facing
Page 3 and 4: A PRODUCT OF PRESIDENT TONY BERNADO
Page 5 and 6: A temporary walkway for constructio
Page 7 and 8: - may very well be the prime reason
Page 9 and 10: The vacant three-story building at
Page 11 and 12: At University Health Care System, p
Page 13 and 14: Jordan Johnson’s journey to the A
Page 15 and 16: with tracts occupied by everything
Page 17 and 18: issues are the same: You don't want
Page 19 and 20: The Augusta Commission District 1 e
Page 21 and 22: High-efficiency chiller. Improvedco
Page 23 and 24: The first phase of the renovation c
Page 25: 1736magazine.com | 25
Page 29 and 30: The original First Baptist Church o
Page 31 and 32: Richmond County Sheriff’s Deputy
Page 33 and 34: Margaret Woodard, executive directo
Page 35 and 36: Graffiti and overgrown weeds mark t
Page 38 and 39: Pedestrians make their way along Ei
Page 40 and 41: MYTHS HARD TO DISPEL Officials can'
Page 42 and 43: THE ALCOHOL EFFECT Patrons congrega
Page 44 and 45: Good first impressions are importan
Page 46 and 47: Richmond County Community Safety Of
Page 48 and 49: Richmond County Sheriff’s Office
Page 50 and 51: URBAN CORE CRIME Below is a year-to
Page 52 and 53: By the 2010s, most of downtown’s
Page 54 and 55: COMPARE... Building: Former Cobern
Page 56: Artist renderings depict the front
Page 59 and 60: The asymmetric roof lines of the pr
Page 61 and 62: Brendan Thompson, executive directo
Page 63 and 64: An artist rendering shows the front
Page 65: Westobou just completed a “Black
Page 68 and 69: BRIEFING By DAMON CLINE HITS & MISS
Page 70 and 71: FINAL WORDS The biggest danger in d

Fall 2020 - 1736 Magazine

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