ATHENS — The historic downtown Saye Building is being demolished after preservationists lost a yearslong battle with a local church that is turning the property into a parking lot.
The removal of the 22,000-square-foot structure has prompted proposed changes to Athens-Clarke County’s demolition permitting process that could help protect historic properties. The County Commission plans to vote on the changes Tuesday.
The 1920s Saye Building had housed automobile-related businesses, a bus company, a business college and law offices. It was purchased by Athens First United Methodist Church in 2004.
The dispute over the structure’s future became a focal point for Athens preservationists as the county government tries to balance protecting historic buildings and allowing for changes amid growth.
The immediate plan for the cleared tract is a 14-space parking lot but “our long-term plans are for something that supports our church mission,” the church’s senior minister, Jerry Lawson, wrote in an email, without further specifying those plans.
He noted that Athens First United Methodist, which is celebrating its 200th anniversary, has a “140-year-old sanctuary and more than 90,000 square feet of space that is used by a variety of community members every day of the week.”
The church, whose main building is across the street, once used the Saye for meetings but had not used it for several years. It said it did not make financial sense to save the Saye because of its poor condition.
Credit: Jim Thompson for the AJC
Credit: Jim Thompson for the AJC
Athens-Clarke Mayor Kelly Girtz said the demolition “is not the outcome that I individually would have wanted, given all the paths that we could have pursued.”
Along with preservationists, Girtz had supported an offer by three community residents to buy the property for $3 million, approximately $1.8 million more than the church paid in 2004. The group’s plan called for investing an additional $5 million to $8 million, some offset by tax credits, to turn the building into a mixed-use space.
One of the would-be purchasers, Chris Jackson, founder of local preservation consulting firm Verity Works, called losing the Saye Building “a bit of a stain on historic preservation in Athens.”
The church began pursuing demolition in 2018. An initial denial by Athens-Clarke County was followed by a demolition moratorium and creation of a downtown historic district aimed at protecting the building.
A court challenge by the church went to mediation, resulting in the removal of the building from the historic district and the issuance of a demolition permit.
Credit: Jason Getz / Jason.Getz@ajc.com
Credit: Jason Getz / Jason.Getz@ajc.com
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