News of an Evolution

Today I am writing about a revolution, no, no I mean an evolution right here in Georgia! I have talked over time about the storefront we are working to create with Walnut Knoll Farm, LLC. You see, we took an old historic storefront in the small town of Lavonia, Georgia that was covered with tacky wood signs...it was leaking like a sieve, and the wiring was unbelievable. However, we saw beauty where there was tacky, we saw strength where there was little, if anything, to secure that vision, and we saw modern, state of the art infrastructure where there was disaster waiting to happen, and, with the help of a bunch of friends and a fantastic builder, we are beginning to see an awakening.

I could show you hundreds of pictures to document our journey, but I will only share a few select ones here to tell a story that is about to be unfolded on East Main Street, Lavonia, Georgia. Here is the news!

Back in 1898, or thereabouts, a block of brick buildings was constructed to fulfill the early dreams of merchants, bankers, and newspaper men in a small but growing city in the northeastern sector of Georgia. This city was founded on the promise of the railroad, which ran right down the middle of town. On one side of the track, the street was named West Main and, on the other side of the track the street was named East Main. West Main was the location for large two story structures shouting out the macho nature of the community, whereas East Main was built with the working man and woman in mind. Single story buildings, with elegant brickwork, made from locally produced brick lined the street which was anchored by a very elegant bank. The other end of East Main came to a stop at the train depot. Itself, a fine structure that saw many a deal struck under its roofline and within its grand interior.

Midway down East Main stood a very grand hotel, one of three to stand in that same location. As fortune and time would have it, the first, second, and third hotels each came to a firey end. The final hotel fire took away a neighboring shop and charred the roof and its supporting structure of the storefront that had housed the Lavonia Times and a variety of entities [and now is being renovated to house The Southern Alpaca Connection]. We are thankful that the land area that held three grand hotels, that went the way of fire and flame, has been beautifully used as a gathering place, complete with an elaborate gazebo.

However, where fire nor flame destroyed the structure at 1192 East Main, over time human kind took a toll on the building. Used for many purposes, from newspaper offices to funeral home storage, to laundromat, to donut shop, 1192 East Main was used and often abused. The entire grouping of windows on the northern façade were bricked up, the beautiful arched windows and door at the rear of the building were removed and replaced with rough siding, and holes were hammered through the two foot walls without discretion. The front brick crownwork, elegantly designed and built by early craftsmen, was totally torn off and replaced with plywood and cheap plastic signage. A non-conforming freestanding sign was constructed and tied into the electrical system in a fashion that would have sent a present day code inspector on a tirade.

The interior did not manage well either. The beautiful bead board ceiling was completely ripped out and a cheap drop down ceiling placed within the structure, the original restroom area was knocked out and left to decay, the area was quickly retrofitted with a heating and cooling system that left everything to be desired, and many structural features were simply covered up with a fake wall structure. The wiring was done and redone in a very haphazard manner, with enough wiring being used, and tied together in a fashion no code would condone. Matter of fact, if the total wiring found in the storefront had been tied together end to end, it probably would have been long enough to stretch around the entire City of Lavonia.

Once The Southern Alpaca Connection project got underway, the state Main Street Program was called in to provide guidance for the reconstruction of the building at 1192 East Main. The drawing that we decided to use as a jumping off point is shown here. As you will see, the recommendation suggested that we reopen the windows and replace the existing windows with commercial type glass structures. It also suggested that we look at using a double door entry.

We researched the structure as best we could, talked with the head of the historical society, and decided that we would add an awning, and a single entry door. These are not shown on the following depiction, however, most of the other changes can be seen.

The awning will be a tin type of structure because the original awning (or at least the earliest pictorial renditions we have) was made of tin. We have recessed the entrance to make it more inviting to customers, reopened the windows to allow a generous flow of light into the front portion of the storefront, as well. The ceiling has been raised to the original level and bead board has been reinstalled to bring back the feel of the original, while also placing drop down lighting of the early period. We have torn out the duct work for the heat and air system and replaced the system with a ductless, remote controlled environmentally healthy system. This should give the feel of the old setting, especially since we will reintroduce a free standing "pot belly" heating stove for show.

As you move to the rear of the storefront, you will come upon the roasting area, which will house a commercial coffee roasting operation, as well as, a retail area for purchase of bagged coffee, brewers, grinders, and a variety of other related items. We will offer a coffee nook so that our customers can sample the coffees we have on hand. The original building had huge arched windows and door in the rear, taking up an entire wall. We have opened this area up with replacement windows that should remind anyone that sees them of the "olden" days of this fine building. The coffee area will be accessible from the alpaca products area and through the arched doorway.

While renovation work was being done, we uncovered an old fireplace in the interior wall. While this is no longer a functioning fireplace, we will give it an appearance of use and have it as a focal point within the coffee nook area.

All these changes are taking place as you are reading this newsy article. We will be able to soon send you out pictures of the finished product, announce a grand opening event, and begin providing exciting accounts of the coffee area that will serve The Alpaca Bean Coffee on an exclusive basis. The area in the rear has even got a name, one that should attract at least a double take...Alpaca Java Joe's Coffee Cave.

Next month we will hopefully be able to share the news of what is instead of what will be! Until then, enjoy your New Year's Day, relax and get ready for a grand year in 2015!