The first phase of a roughly $5 million renovation of Mobile’s historic Buick Building is on track to wrap up this summer, with the property’s new owners set to become its first tenants in more than a decade.
Commercial construction firm Rogers & Willard Inc., which purchased the two-story, 40,000-square-foot building at 455 St. Louis St. in late 2014, plans to move roughly 30 employees into about 6,000 square feet of newly renovated first-floor space. Atlanta-based software development firm Rural Sourcing Inc. is expected to follow later in the fall, relocating from temporary space several blocks away into another 9,000 square feet on the building’s ground floor, with plans to eventually grow to around 100 employees at the location.
Despite strong interest in the remaining space, no tenants have yet been secured for the rest of the ground floor or the entirely vacant 17,000 square feet on the second level. Developers say they would welcome a grocery store or deli concept in the remaining first-floor space, citing the nearby De Tonti Square Historic District and steady commuter traffic heading west out of downtown each afternoon.
Built in 1926, the brick structure, also known as the Turner-Todd Motor Co. building, was originally constructed as a prototype General Motors dealership, a design later replicated in cities across the country. A one-story, 5,600-square-foot addition was added to the building’s east end in 1940. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2008 but had sat vacant for nearly 13 years before the renovation began.
The project sits along St. Louis Street, an area city and business leaders have identified as a prime candidate for redevelopment into a high-tech corridor. The corridor became the focus of a $500,000 grant proposal submitted to the U.S. Economic Development Administration in late 2014, which, if approved, could fund a feasibility study into creating a research park in the area.
Developers say they’ve worked closely with the city from the earliest design stages, aiming for the project to serve as a model for the broader redevelopment of St. Louis Street rather than a standalone renovation. The goal, they say, is to set a design and functional standard for future projects along the corridor.
Beyond the immediate renovation, backers of the project describe it as part of a larger push to build out downtown Mobile’s residential and commercial appeal, arguing the city has lagged behind regional peers in attracting the kind of downtown living options that draw younger residents. As the plywood comes down and new glass goes up on the building’s storefronts, developers say they expect the space to look dramatically different from the vacant structure that has sat idle for years.