Five Points Ranch House From the 1950s Bites the Dust

A demolition request filed in February was realized this week.

Good-bye, Historic Ranch House! Many Will Miss You

The 1950s ranch house at the corner of University and Pinecrest is leveled.

  A demolition permit was filed in February, and then the demolition was delayed for 30 days. Now the house is gone.   You may also wish to read: Clock Ticking for 1950s-era One-story in Athens, Ga.

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Clock has Stopped on Demolition of 1950s Five Points House--For 30 Days

Does anyone out there want the house?

Athens Clarke County District 4 Commissioner Allison Wright has asked for a 30-day delay in the demolition of a house at 232 University Drive, on the corner of University and Pinecrest. She did so, she said in an email, in the hope that someone will come forward and move the unique house from its location. It has suffered in the past few years from a lack of attention and upkeep, but remains a very interesting and attractive building--a favorite of many in Five Points. Wright says that the people who bought the lot plan to keep the three-car garage and the interior courtyard, but not the swimming pool nor the house itself. They will replace it with a one-and-half-story cottage style house with dormers. Sketches of the house show a variety…

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Hillary Thompson

9:07 am on Friday, March 8, 2013

Please don't destroy this house! The lines are beautiful and it sits handsomely on this corner, a favorite of many, and commented upon as being the "Frank Lloyd Wright house." I wonder if the people destroying it are from the area. It seems that if they were, they would restore it, rather than destroy. They would know that it's beloved in the neighborhood. I live in the neighborhood and will …   more ›

Clock Ticking for 1950s-era One-story in Athens, Ga.

A demolition permit has been filed for the house at Pinecrest and University.

  A demolition permit has been filed for a house at the corner of Pinecrest and University Drive. Built in the 1950s by Alwin Stiles, it's a self-possessed, one-story home on a street with a mix of styles and sizes, including larger, older, two-story buildings. Its thin bricks and tidy landscaping set it apart. But the clock is ticking on this building: the deadline for demolition to begin is March 15. There was a slight outcry on the FOFP listserv on Tuesday as members learned of the proposed demolition of the house, a three car garage in the back and a swimming pool. "Better than a mcMonster or Craftsman copy -- a least it is an honest midcentury modern -- which will someday be greatly appreciated," wrote Conoly Hester. "And one of the …

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Rebecca McCarthy

10:56 am on Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Kath, good for your mom! I've seen what's happened in Buckhead,and it's not pretty. Thanks for writing.   more ›

Adams Says Legion Is "An Outdated Pool on Valuable Real Estate"

UGA President said he was surprised by the community's negative reaction to proposed demolition of historic Legion Pool in Athens, Ga.

  During his monthly press conference, UGA President Michael Adams talked about budget woes. He talked about how well-qualified and diverse the freshman class is. And he answered about Legion Pool, the historic pool built by the American Legion and the WPA in the 1930s. He seemed a little peeved to have to talk about Legion Pool, noting that more has been written about the pool than about the looming budget crisis that could cripple the university.  These are some of the highlights of what he said: * "This whole issue has gotten blown out of proportion," he said. The negative reaction of many in the Athens community to the demolition plans surprised him. What you have is an outdated pool on valuable real estate. It's right in the middle of…

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UGA Accepting Public Comments About Legion Pool in Athens, Ga.

The public has 30 days, until mid-September, to share their opinions.

  Legion Pool may be closed for the season, but the fight to save the historic structure from demolition goes on. The University of Georgia on Friday ran a public notice in the Athens Banner Herald, under miscellaneous, about the pool. The notice, a copy of which is included in the images, says that UGA hired Travis Pruitt & Associates, Inc., to conduct an environmental effects report. Although the notice doesn’t ask for public comment, the university is now--for 30 days, beginning last Friday-- accepting letters from those interested in the pool. According to J. Dorsey, the Georgia Environmental Policy Act “has regulations in it that say if you wish to tear down a historic building, you need to have an environmental effects report …

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UGA Documents Indicate Legion Pool Replacement to Exclude Community

Documents on the new pool proposed for Lake Herrick do not mention the public using it.

UGA officials are proposing that a new swimming pool at Lake Herrick serve as a replacement for historic Legion Pool on Lumpkin Street. The new pool, the university says, will be smaller than 12,000-square-foot Legion Pool, but it will have many of the same things: a shade pavilion, a picnic area, a concession stand and lap lanes. The one thing it won't have is swimmers from the Athens community, or their relatives, not directly attending or employed by the UGA. Supporting documents were sent to Elizabeth Shirk, Environmental Review Coordinator for the Historic Preservation Commission of the Department of Natural Resources along with a letter, asking for permission to demolish Legion Pool. Number 11 of the narrative included with a letter…

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Rebecca McCarthy

8:52 am on Wednesday, July 25, 2012

I think it's not the pool that's a problem. It's where it is that's a problem for the university, because they want to build something on that land or around the land. One person said they are on a quest to "Disneyland-ize" the university campus with the buildings all being the same. Legion, like Rutherford, dates from the 1930s. Ain't no buildings in Disneyland from the '30s, is they?   more ›

UGA Moves To Demolish Legion Pool

Campus architects cite the structure's "physical obsolescence" as one reason to remove it.

  The Athens Clarke Heritage Foundation says it was begun in 1933 by the local American Legion Post, and finished by the Works Progress Administration in 1936. Since then, Legion Pool has been a vital part of summer life for the Athens and university communities. This summer may be its last. University of Georgia officials have asked for permission to demolish the historic structure. They did so in a letter to Elizabeth Shirk, environmental review coordinator for the Historic Preservation Division, part of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources. The pool isn't on the National Register, but it could be, because it was built by the Works Progress Administration. The university acquired the pool in the 1950s, though the City of Athens …

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Rutherford Hall To be Torn Down in 2012

President Adams decides Tuesday to raze historic residence hall.

Word gets around fast, you know, especially when it’s bad. Everybody realizes I’m not long for this world unless the Regents intervene before the wheels start to turn. I’ve known for years that I wasn’t well, you understand. The decades of moisture have left me wheezy and susceptible to respiratory problems and strange black rashes. And all sorts of aches and pains in my joints. Not too unusual when you’re in your 70s. But still, a body gets tired. I thought I was going to be getting the treatment so I could get better. You know, the treatment. Soule and Myers had the treatment, and Lord help us, they look 30 years younger if they look a day. Nobody thought twice about giving it or refusing it. They just did it. Folks have been talking all…

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