Canton Tackles Jones Building Renovation Project

CANTON, GA -- Canton leaders have taken the first step in restoring the Jones Mercantile Building into a fully-functional space in its central business district.

The City Council at its Thursday, Dec. 15 meeting approved a professional services agreement with Lord Aeck Sargent to provide architectural and design services for historic preservation and renovation of the building.

The cost of the contract is $110,540.

A fire services consolidation agreement with Cherokee County approved by the Council resulted in the city acquiring the Jones Building, a stipulation that will go into effect Jan. 1, 2017.

City Manager Billy Peppers said once Canton formally retains ownership of the building, it will have crews go in and evaluate the structure's roof to see what repairs need to be done. Once the architectural and design standards are approved by the city, Canton will begin work on any interior demolition and exterior renovations necessary for the project.

Peppers said the city should substantially complete the bulk of the project in 2017, but noted he's not sure if all of the work could be finished by the end of next year.

According to documents provided by the city, the roughly 45,850-square-foot building on East Main Street was built in 1879 and expanded in 1914. It was originally a mercantile store in downtown Canton.

The building was occupied by the county government until late 2008 when it moved to its new administration building on Bluffs Parkway. It was also home to the United States Postal Services until the agency closed up shop and moved those services to its Riverstone Boulevard Post Office.

The building has been vacant ever since. Cherokee County in 2013 was set to consider an agreement with Westbridge Partners, but that deal fell through when the company said historic tax credits from the federal government did not materialize.

In 2015, the county originally approved an agreement to sell the building to Jones Mercantile LLC, which initially had plans to locate a movie studio and gaming venture into the structure. That proposal also never came into fruition.

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