An old building gets a new look

Image of the Baxter Center before renovations from Peterson Properties

Picture from Kathrin Merritt of the Baxter Center

By: Kathrin Merritt

Baxter Street is beginning to look a lot like many other historic spaces in Athens: refreshed. The Baxter Street Center, located next to the Athens-Clarke County Library, is an older building with a fresh new face. The location dates back to the 1960s, according to the building’s owner and head of Peterson Properties in Athens Chris Peterson, but over the past year it has transformed into a space meant for the modern age.

Why it’s newsworthy: Athens is growing. Over the past 10 years, the population of the Classic City has grown by more than 11,000 people and many of the people coming in are younger, with the median age being 28 years old. The centuries-old town and its youthful population combine in a way that is uniquely Athens, and the Baxter Center exemplifies this..

“Athens is the Classic City. Downtown has that vibe to it, and Athens is an old city. So, I like the fact we are in an older building that gives that new look, it has that old vibe,” says Greg Phillips, co-owner of Walls of Books Athens, a store located in the Baxter Center.

This old building with a modern feel was no accident. Peterson has more than two decades of experience working in preserving older buildings, but the design he went for with the Baxter Center project was still something that was new for him.

“So I've done a lot of historic preservation work… for over 20 years, and… we aim towards a historic feel…,” says Peterson. “Modern is definitely not the way that I typically go and the Baxter Street Center doesn't look like anything else that I've done before.”

The building’s exterior has clean, simple, hand-painted signs splashed across a blue and white background, which coupled with a modern awning and big floor to ceiling windows, are meant to give a fresh look for the businesses inside. However, the building has not always had such a modern touch. Peterson best explains this, along with his personal connection to the Baxter Center and what his goal was with remodeling.

In this audio, Peterson explains the history and goals of this renovation.

The decision to clearly divide each shop also enables business owners to create a storefront that feels unique to them. For some businesses, this opportunity for individuality looked like keeping the signs out front that had already been up at their shop instead of using the painted ones that the majority of shops decided to use.

“[Lee’s Wigs] has had their sign for a while and my sign is different… so I kept mine,” says Troy Brookins, owner of Fin Alley at the Baxter Center. “We are all a little different. We still fit the mold of what [landlord, Chris Peterson,] was looking for, but we’re all a little different.”

For others, the change was welcomed as an attractive, cost effective way to welcome customers. Jason Dean of Figment Kombucha is the tenant behind the idea to have hand-painted signs. Dean got Will Mitchell of Squared Away Signs, whose signs can also be found at Ponce City Market in Atlanta, to paint the new signage. For Dean, the switch was both a creative and practical decision.

“One of the main reasons we got our signs painted is because it was a lot cheaper, but it also looks a lot better to be hand done,” says Dean. “So it accomplished both of those things for us, looking a little different and original and being cheaper than having a plastic, vinyl sign made.”

The one element all of the shops have in common is they are all a part of Peterson Properties. Though Peterson works on all types of properties, providing local businesses a spot to flourish is something he appreciates.

“It's neat to see local businesses, and it's also neat to see people, when it's their first time that they're having a space,” says Peterson. “You know that was Figments first spot… and then you’ve got the polar opposite of that, like Lee's wigs, they were Downtown I think for either 42 or 43 years. So you kind of have a good mixture there which is really unique but… again it’s neat to have local businesses in spots like that.”

The community has also been enjoying the new changes added to the building.

“I think the brick looks cool and the white wood, but also the storefronts are really nice,” says Jamie Fjelstul, a customer at the Baxter Center.

“I like that it has a bunch of windows so you get a lot of natural light, which I feel is a good thing to have,” says Benjamin Whitaker, who is also a customer.

The forefront of the project has been keeping Athens in mind. Despite new changes and renovations, the Baxter Center is still striving to maintain its old charm.

“We want something that blends into the community and we’re in a building that does that. [It has] that old Athens feel,” says Phillips.

Athens Farmers Market helps community shop fresh, local—and safe—during pandemic

Increased safety measures have encouraged Athenians to visit the market on Saturday mornings. As a result, vendors have seen a rise in sales.

By: Kathrin Merritt

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7CMi43ibWw

Pandemic fears have left people hesitant to attend large functions, but the Athens Farmers Market has seen an outpouring of support for their local vendors despite public concern.

“Even though we have a lot fewer customers coming to the market, a lot of our vendors have seen increased sales," said Monica Bledsoe, Athens Farmers Market program director. "We believe this is due to one, the strength of our community here in Athens, the drive to really support local during the pandemic and help small businesses and three, the Farmer’s Market was one of the first open air, big events that is available every single week here in Athens that people do feel safe at because we have been taking precautions."

The market even saw its SNAP Doubling program reach record breaking heights this past year. The program allows families using SNAP to double their credit when buying produce from the Athens Farmers Market.

Last year, the market served over 35,000 guests over the span of 32 markets. This increase in sales follows what has been a national trend of local farms being successful in the pandemic. What has been drawing people to the markets?

“For food security purposes, it’s convenient, they can have a better perspective and relationship with that farm… and… another thing is people trying to support their local economy,” says Molly Gayner at Woodland Gardens. “While people are looking for food security, they can also support someone’s job and I think that’s another reason why people started looking locally for food.”

While some people were turning to local farms to provide a reliable food source, for others the switch to homegrown produce has been a way to connect with their food and to the local community around them.

"Getting locally produced food just makes you actually connect with it," said Hayley Hunter, a market customer and University of Georgia student. "Like where it's coming from because when you go to the grocery store and you buy but you don't really think about it but when you actually go to the farmers market and thinking ‘this is where it came from.’”

[need some kind of transition to break up back to back quotes]

For others, trips to the farmers market is just about showing up for small farm owners and getting good products.

“We come to the farmer’s market pretty much every weekend to support the local farmers and get some good stuff,” says Penn Dodson, a market customer.

And with more people coming back out to the markets as they see the effectiveness of safety measures that are in place, it is clear that support for local farmers in Athens hasn't wavered.

Museum acquires off-site storage space

https://georgiamuseum.org/gmoa_blog/museum-acquires-off-site-storage-space/

Thursday, July 22, 2021

By: Kathrin Merritt

Shoeboxes are mostly home to shoes (obviously), spare keys, old letters and myriad other small mementos from years past, but the Georgia Museum of Art’s shoebox is its newest storage solution. In its new off-site storage unit, nicknamed “Shoebox,” the museum will store exhibition materials and publications in order to free up space for the ever-growing collection. This year marks 10 years since the museum’s addition and renovation, but a lot of growth has happened in the past decade and the need for more space has grown exponentially. “In a way, we are the victims of our own success,” said the museum’s deputy director, Annelies Mondi. “We have maintained an ambitious exhibition and publication schedule and actively seek and cultivate acquisitions to enhance our collections.”

With 117 exhibitions hosted since the renovation in 2011 and thousands of objects in the museum’s permanent collection, there is always work to be done behind the scenes. All the works coming into the museum means storage space needs to function with preservation and security in mind. Since the museum is already equipped for storing and preserving art, Mondi decided the best use of Shoebox would be to house building materials used in the construction of exhibitions, as well as the bulk of catalogs published by the museum. The museum will now have more space for collections, including the few large donations that prompted the decision to expand.

Mondi immediately knew that the space should be called “Shoebox.” The name aptly describes the boxy space, but it also references an inside joke from a Nashville work trip Mondi took with head of exhibition design and chief preparator Todd Rivers. The pair decided to go to a trivia night where they were prompted to come up with a team name. Mondi spontaneously said “shoebox,” only to discover that traditional trivia names are much less innocent.

The museum is constantly adapting and growing to serve its purposes as both an academic museum and the state museum of Georgia. So, while Shoebox is a tremendous relief for storage today, there are bound to be more space solutions needed in the years to come. For now, though, the extra square footage will help the museum continue its ongoing mission to provide and protect art for the many communities it serves. “Having an off-site storage facility… enables the museum to grow and further our mission to collect, preserve, exhibit and interpret significant works of art,” said Mondi.

The move would not have been possible without the hard work and collaboration of Mondi, Rivers, director of security and facilities Keith Thalhamer, director of communications Hillary Brown, Keith Drake, Tim South and all the folks at the university’s Facilities Management Division!