Butterworth

OUT OF THE PAST, INTO THE FUTURE

14 LOCAL

THE HOPEWELL NEWS

Friday, February, 2009

PHOTO BY ELLIOTT ROBINSON

The building as it stands today

PHOTO COURTESY JACK DANIEL

The building in its heyday ◆ By ELLIOTT ROBINSON After not one but two rounds of applause from the audience after the developer's presentation, City Council unanimously approved selling of the former Butterworth's Furniture Store to Butterworth Lofts LLC for $50,000 Tuesday evening. The sale of the building, a former hotel that dates to just after the Hopewell Fire of 1915, will represent a $4.1-million investment into the city when the building is converted to nearly 4,000 square feet of commercial space and 32 luxury residential units. The renovation work is not a partnership between the city and the developer and it will not use any city funds. "I'm really excited about it," said Christina Luman-Bailey during the meeting. She is the Councilor for Ward 1, the location of the building. Proposals for the building began in April 2008 and two development teams were chosen to present in August 2008, said Assistant City Manager March Altman. The chosen developers, an entity related to Monument Construction LLC and

Commonwealth Architects. "We see this development as a big benefit to downtown," Altman said. Monument Construction, founded in 1998, has worked on projects such as the conversion of the former Hanover Christian Church in Richmond to 7 condominiums, and the reconfiguration of an apartment building at 1630 Monument Avenue in Richmond to condominiums. Projects for Commonwealth Architects, founded in 1999, include the Mayton Transfer Lofts on East Bank Street in Petersburg, 326 E. Washington St. in Suffolk and the Miller and Rhodes Building in downtown Richmond. "We're real excited to be in Hopewell," said Christopher a member of Johnson, Butterworth Lofts LLC. The Butterworth's Building began its life around 1915 as the Larkins Hotel. One of the first tenants of the building, Eva Larkins, is the great grandmother of Judge Kenneth Nye. One of the commercial tenants of the building before Butterworth's was Metropolitan Chain Stores. The renovations will retain

many of the historic features of the hotel — such as pressed tin ceilings, large corridors and light wells — and add many modern amenities as well. The residential units will washer and driers, stainless steel kitchen appliances, granite countertops and hardwood floors. The rooms will average about 700 square feet with the smallest being no less than 555 square feet. The second floor will have a patio for the use of the residents and restaurant patrons, if one were to open in a retail space. On East Broadway, the front of the for-

BUTTERWORTH LOFTS Built: Circa 1915 as the Larkins Hotel. Eva Larkins, great grandmother of Hopewell Judge Kenneth Nye, was the first tenant Location: 245 E. Broadway and former warehouse space at 244 E. Cawson Street Sale Price: $50,000 Project Scope: $4.1 million investment Square footage: - 34,000 with 3,947 square feet of commercial space in Broadway building - 6,662 square feet of living space on Cawson Number of units: 32 with an average size of 700 square feet and no unit smaller than 555 square feet. Rent: Estimated between $775 and $1,250. Amenities: Washer and drier in unit, stainless steel appliances, granite countertops, hardwood floors Expected annual real estate tax revenue: $44,700

PHOTOS COURTESY OF COMMONWEALTH ARCHITECTS

The alley before renovations (above) and after (below)

mer furniture store will be divided into up to four retail spaces and the rear of the building will be the separate entryways to several residential units. The current alley between the warehouse and the main building will be converted into a landscaped courtyard to tie in the two ends of the development. The warehouse will become several living spaces as well. Overall, council members were impressed by the prospects in what is viewed as the start of a new wave of redevelopment downtown.

"Congratulations on putting a great project together," said Ward 3 Councilor Kenneth Emerson. Ward 5 Councilor K. Wayne Walton asked perhaps the most burning question of the night: "When can you start?" On the developer's side of things, only a few finishing touches have to be made before their work is finalized. Upon final approval of a few minor aspects of the project by the Board of Zoning Appeals Feb. 18, the city and Butterworth Lofts LLC could finalize docu-

ments in March, the developer can file permits and preliminary work could begin on the building soon thereafter. "The City of Hopewell has committed significant resources and passion into their long term revitalization plans for downtown and are we are committed to completing a high quality project that will bring energy to Hopewell and will hopefully be the catalyst for future redevelopment projects by our team and other developers,” said Marc a partner with Gault, Butterworth.

PHOTO COURTESY OF COMMONWEALTH ARCHITECTS

The proposed exterior design