The Master Plan consulting group illuminated several issues that should be addressed: the Ford Building, Mt. Zion School, the Old Armory and Fortune Springs Park, and also laid out a payment scheme so these projects could be funded.
Downtown Development director Jill Cincotta wanted a firm commitment from the members of Town Council on what project to begin with, specifically, she wanted a commitment on the Mt. Zion School property.
The Master Plan proposed three redevelopment schemes for that property; all of them involved razing the old school building to make the property more attractive for developers.
“The Master Plan determined that Mt. Zion was our most pressing issue. There’s a timeline as to when things should be done; this is the time to determine if we can handle (redeveloping or making the school building
useable,)” Cincotta said.
“I don’t want to cut you off, but my thought is: tear it down,” said Mayor Roger Gaddy.
Cincotta said initial estimates in the Master Plan show that it will cost the Town $150,000 to $200,000 to demolish and remove the building. The building is almost ready to collapse on its own, Cincotta said, “but it will actually cost less for the Town to be proactive and take it down, than to let it fall down on its own.”
A controlled demolition means that parts of the school, like the brick and any hardwood inside, could be sold or given to people who want to salvage it to offset the cost of the demolition; if the building falls to ruin on its own, that chance would be lost.
One proposal for the property is to give it to a developer, who would then in turn re-use the existing building to build apartments, and add more housing units.
After the Town transfers the property, a potential developer’s next step would be to do an engineering study to determine how feasible using the building was. But, Cincotta pointed out to council, there would be no use in the developer doing that, if the zoning could not be changed to accommodate a higher density of homes.
Marcia Bonds said she did not think the idea of re-using the existing school building for apartments or condos would sit well with some of the Town citizens.
“One of my concerns is there’s such a housing glut in Winnsboro, and if we say someone’s going to build more housing...what people who don’t want Mt. Zion to be developed will say is why would we build more houses when we have all these houses for sale?” Bonds said.
Cincotta responded that there was very little of the type of housing in Winnsboro, say for young professionals such as teachers, that the developers would want to build.
Mayor Gaddy said, “looking at it the way I would, not being emotionally attached to Mt. Zion, the best thing would be to tear Mt. Zion down (the back part where the school is, between Walnut Street and Gooding Street,) start with that and put up some single-family homes and maybe four to eight townhouses,” he said.
Cincotta asked each of the council members what their feelings on the Mt. Zion property were.
Marcia Bonds: “My ultimate hope was to be able to re-do the auditorium, and have a park with lots of greenspace and keep it for the citizens of Winnsboro, not build houses all over it...but I think we’re down to fish or cut bait time, because we can’t keep talking about it anymore; we’re going to have some serious health issues with the property.”
Stan Klaus: “If (the school building) couldn’t be used for anything, tear it down, put a small monument on the grounds that says ‘Here at one time stood Mt. Zion Institute’.
Mayor Gaddy” “As I said, we should tear it down and have those lots between Walnut Street and Gooding Street available...(with restrictive covenants as to what can be built--Stan Klaus added).
Council decided to begin the process to solicit bids for salvage and demolition of the school building and to look at subdividing the property into lots.
Mayor Gaddy laid out what he thought the process should be:
“I think what you do first of all is you decide what you’re going to do with the school, you look at what these salvage companies say, and you make a decision about that and take whatever heat we have to take about that....then you look at it from a zoning and how you want to divide (the property) up...I think there is a market for small townhomes...you build four of those and price them accordingly either for sale or to rent...you look at this property and see what and say ‘What part of this property can you use for that’...build the homes in keeping with the historical nature of the Town...the homes would be nicer, in keeping with the other homes in the neighborhood, so that it doesn’t do anything to the value of the homes already there...
“I don’t know why, within 18 months, you can’t have the Mt. Zion issue rectified,” he said.
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