The old Bowen Press building at 312 Church Street is one of the more unique buildings in Downtown Decatur.

Bowen operated out of the space until the early 1970s, according to local residents.  (See a 1943 exterior photo of the building here and 1927 interior photo here)

For years the building space behind the street front retail locations (Sapori, the coming Brushstroke Sushi Izakaya, Re/Max) has been rather hidden from the general public, serving as an offices for SafeCo Insurance and most recently a temporary City of Decatur office space.

However, we learned with much fanfare late last year that Guy Wong would soon be opening up a new restaurant, Big Boss Chinese, in part of the space off the street.  And now we learn – via the Decatur Focus – that Trinity Mercantile & Design is moving into and renovating the space, exposing the old barrel vaulted ceilings.

Trinity Mercantile & Design is also growing. Owners Lisa Turner and Wallace Bryan are moving the business across the street into a bigger location adjacent to Big Peach Running Co. The new store can be accessed from Church Street or Trinity Place. The new space, once occupied by SafeCo Insurance and used for several years as temporary office space by the City of Decatur, takes advantage of the beautiful, historic architecture of the building.

Take a peek inside and feast your eyes on the gorgeous barrel vaulted ceiling they have exposed.

The city goes on to describe the building a “retail and restaurant center that will bring more energy and foot traffic to this side of the square”.  The blurb also notes that neighboring Sapori di Napoli will also soon be adding a covered patio.

It sure will be interesting to see this space when it’s all built out.

My wife and I noticed about a month ago that it looked like ReMax was vacating its location in the old Bowen Press building on Church Street.  And I actually took a pic of the empty space last week, meaning to post it and reiterate its awesomeness and ask everyone what they thought it should become.

Well, Oakhurst Realty – who has been tasked with leasing the space – believes it’s the “best available restaurant space in downtown Decatur”.  Here’s their description of the property on their website…

The Bowen Loft is a one-of-a-kind loft building located in the heart of downtown Decatur. It is a perfect location for a high-end restaurant or for other retail or create office users. It has an exposed wood barrel roof with ceiling heights of 22 feet in the center and includes exposed brick walls. The building also shares 57 parking spaces that it can use at no cost.

That piece of Church Street could really use a bit more life.  A popular restaurant or retail spot could be just the thing.  And the amazing interior space, combined with a good amount of parking has the potential to attract a very interesting tenant!

Photo courtesy of Oakhurst Realty