December 15, 2009

The owners of a business in Downtown Charlottesville went ahead with renovations and destroyed a curved front window, which did not sit well with some people in Charlottesville who saw the window as historic.

The shop, located at 219 West Main Street, is slated to become a frozen yogurt store, and the owners say the storefront change was an innocent mistake.

Tuesday evening the Board of Architectural Review told the owners they must restore the storefront's curved glass windows. Members of the BAR were upset the windows were demolished in the first place, and were especially shocked the owner and property manager did not seek a permit from them.

One board member called the demolition, "An egregious, egregious mistake. An error."

Another member said, "I think it's removal is inappropriate and it does detract from the character of the mall."

Property owner, Joe Gieck, and property manager, William Rice, say the glass was cracked, and claim it was not the original. However, they said they will work with the BAR so the current tenants can eventually move in.

The BAR has asked Gieck and Rice to restore the original storefront with the curved glass. Preservation and Design Planner, Mary Joy Scala, says she received a call from someone stating they removed the glass during the demolition. Rather than taking the original glass to the landfill, they kept it for themselves. This person told Scala they would make the glass available if necessary.

Gieck deferred his application to restore the storefront until January, so they have time to come up with an accurate design.