On facebook, Save Strickland Mill just posted a critique of certain parts of the VDT’s writeup on the Remerton City Council’s Strickland Mill vote. -jsq

Valdosta Daily Times, September 12, 2012
Mill to come down: Buildings to be razed, historic tower to remain
by Quinten Plummer

VALDOSTA — The iconic smoke stack will still tower over the City of Remerton, according to local officials, but the majority of the historic Remerton Mill complex will be demolished and converted into a park after the City Council gave the mill’s owners the go-ahead for demolition during Monday evening’s regular session.

This is not a factual statement: the city council’s motion is as follows: Councilman Bill Wetherington made the following motion which was unanimously voted in by the council members present that night (note that councilman Sam Flemming was not in attendance)

“I move to approve the certificate of appropriateness 2012-04 for 1853 W. Gordon to be issued and effective as of October 25th 2012 for a period of one year from that date with the condition that the cotton mill smokestack remains intact and shall continue to remain intact in accordance with title 18 of the code of City of Remerton.”

The mill’s ownership group simply wants relief from its obligations to the property, and Remerton Mayor Cornelius Holsendolph said the restoration of the mill is just too large of a project for a city of Remerton’s size.

That is the reason why

Save the Mill advocates presented an alternate plan reducing the redevelopment project of the entire mill complex to the 1899 original building. the plan would not be limited to the city of Remerton. Save the Mill advocates proposed finding the right developer (private or public entity) to take on the 1899 mill, smokestack and the 1930s water tower.

“Our biggest concern was the financial feasibility of us moving forward with buying the mills and putting in the necessary work to restore it,” said Holsendolph. “It’d be great if the Save the Mill committee can find a way to save it. But as a small town, we just don’t have the money to take on the project.”

Unfortunately the decision that the city made on Monday night to accept the total demolition of the mill complex (save the smokestack) removes any legal protection that the city had over the mill. Instead the city took away any guarantee for save the mill advocates to continue with their efforts to find a way to save it.

The agreement will keep the wrecking balls and salvage truck away for 45 days, said Holsendolph who stressed that the smoke stack will remain intact.

45 days does not provide adequate time to pursue any further offers.

He also said that the site will be home to a new park, which will feature a walkway that leads straight to the tower.

A park and walkway were not included in the motion. Mayor Holsendolph confused the city of Remerton staff’s recommendation with the actual motion. The motion transcribed above is also available in its entirety in this live footage found here.

[ … ]

Joe Tillman, spokesman for the Remerton Mills LLC and part owner, said the group desired to cut its losses and completely demolish the mill site when he spoke before city council in June. He claimed that the buildings are structurally dependent upon each other in a way that the entire site had to be leveled.

This statement is an opinion only.

Tuesday’s decision was a compromise of sorts, as it essentially lifts the bulk of the mill’s financial burden from the ownership group, which stated that it had worked with more than 20 developers to work on a feasible plan for restoring the site. The decision also leaves the City of Remerton with a hallmark from its historic past.

A compromise was not reached. 98% of the mill complex was approved for total demolition. The decision was made on Monday night not on Tuesday.

 

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