- Mayor Baskett favors “GO Bond” on November ballot [AJC]
- Longtime neglected building in Oakhurst to be torn down [AJC]
- A roundup of DHS sports so far this Spring [3ten]
- Another classic car spotted in Decatur [Next Stop…Decatur]
- Third Rail Studios in Doraville is latest addition to Georgia’s burgeoning film industry [ArtsATL]
- Inman Park festival this weekend [Site]
- Stewart Brand: Why extinction is not the problem [Aeon]
Photo courtesy of Google Streetview
I’m glad they are going to take down the Tabernacle Missionary Holiness Church, but does that a too-big-for-the-lot-house will immediately spring up on the site? What if the land was used for something way cooler like a pocket park or school garden.
I believe the land is owned by the city. It is a very odd shaped lot, so not sure single family residential is the best use. Given that it is directly across the street from the 4/5 Academy, hopefully they can put it to use somehow.
Good question. It’s actually two tiny little lots rather than just one. Even if combined for development, it would still be pretty small overall. I have to assume any house would be pretty seriously limited due to lot coverage rules.
“walla!” (as we say in the souf) there’s your new dog park!
Obvious solution for that lot:
http://i.imgur.com/U1JdN.png
A pocket amusement park? I’d vote for that!
I like that building! A little strange reminder of the rapidly disappearing past. It could use a little love though.
I also have loved the shape of that building and imagined people worshipping inside. How old is it? What’s the history besides grocery store?
Funny, it was occupied 12 years ago. I remember a story from a friend of mine who lives nearby telling me that they found a child churchgoer in their yard looking for a “switch” to be whooped with.
There’s a monkey in there.
Interesting comments concerning the 5th Ave church. This may be the last church of its kind in Oakhurst. Does anyone know the service schedule? I’ve always wanted to see the inside and worshiping in a missionary tabernacle holiness church, even for a Roman Catholic like moi, would be like triple awesome.
I don’t think there is a service schedule. The place has had a condemned posting (or something similar) for quite some time. I would guess it is an unsafe structure.
The congregation hasn’t worshipped there for about four years now. They had a very nice “decommissioning” of sorts, but the problem for them was that they couldn’t afford to repair the roof, which leaked pretty badly.
They were great neighbors to have, particularly in the years when an empty building in Oakhurst was likely to be a beacon for problems. I think “eyesore” is a bit strong, but I suppose I use that term as well, just mostly with newer construction. Underneath the second-hand siding, the building is red brick with tall windows upstairs and down. They redid the siding about 15 years ago and when they had it stripped it was a remarkably pretty building.
The building was still being used three years ago when we moved to Oakhurst. I chatted with folks from the congregation when they were holding a bake sale outside, and asked them about the building, which is very unusual, and possibly a lot older than we realize. I do wonder how old it is, and am baffled by the fact that nobody claims to know. Surely county tax records would document its history? And for the AJC to call it an eyesore is very annoying. I would much rather look at this characterful building than yet another generic McMansion. Doubtless, its demolition will clear the way for more profiteering.
The City inventoried historic properties a few years ago. It would be interesting to know if this building made it onto their radar.
That building is not only an eyesore, it’s a public nuisance. As can clearly be seen in the picture, a side structure is built right into the sidewalk such that people moving in different directions cannot both pass safely without going into the street. I’ve seen many many times where walkers and riders almost crashed. The community is lucky that an accident hasn’t happened already with the amount of walkers and riders avoiding it during times of busy traffic.
Curb appeal is a matter of opinion and it’s kind of cool that the building frontage IS right at the sidewalk but it’s hardly a “storefront”. And c’mon, there are no windows! (What were they hiding in there?) Looks like a white monopoly hotel with a corner hacked off and the reattached at the wrong angle on the back.
There are windows, but they are covered by the siding. The church did the siding themselves and 1) it is easier to not cut windows in the siding and 2) they didn’t want to worry about break-ins. The bump out into the sidewalk is a nuisance, but probably no more so than the patio at Steinbecks or some of the traffic calming downtown, and unless the two people in question are very large, the sidewalk is passable. Also, the siding covers a brick structure, so underneath all that is a really pretty old grocery that dates probably to the 20s.
Now I’m REALLY curious as to how (or even whether) this building appears in the City’s historic properties inventory.
Thank you for the interesting information.
It is too bad that the occupants are not there anymore, because it really was quite awesome to hear (and sometimes watch) the celebrations on those Sunday mornings in the Spring and Fall when the doors were open!
Oakhurst is full of sidewalks that are impassable for two parties meeting, due to overgrown shrubbery and/or vehicles sticking out of driveways. Sometimes it’s just a matter of big, old tree roots tumbling part of the pavement.
There really aren’t that many places like that. Some, but Oakhurst is not “full” of them. Certainly not along the main walking thoroughfares radiating from the village or to the parks and schools.
Shrubbery can be cut back and vehicles can be moved. A structure protruding into a walking path is a different problem.
Also – realizing that the addition was probably built before there was a sidewalk.
You can include the new “improved” streetscape along Oakview in this list. We’ve now got brand new 5 foot wide sidewalks that neck down to being narrower than an entry door every 20′ or so to make room for the little islands for what I’m assuming will be streetlights. A wide sidewalk with choke points at regular intervals is no better than a really narrow sidewalk.