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Posted on Thu, Sep 24, 2009 : 6:01 a.m.

Beal calls fire 'setback,' but vows to forge ahead with Depot Town restoration

By Paula Gardner

092409_fireaftermath.jpg

Stewart Beal, left, and Scott Dickson stand in front of what is left of the historic Thompson Block building that Beal was renovating in Ypsilanti's Depot Town. Crews are working to put support beams in place to keep the building from completely collapsing after it was destroyed by a fire early Wednesday.

Melanie Maxwell | AnnArbor.com

Stewart Beal sat at a temporary table on the sidewalk outside of the Thompson Block in Ypsilanti’s Depot Town on Wednesday afternoon, oblivious for a moment to the dozens of bystanders orbiting the burned shell of his prized investment.

During that point in his 13-hour day, he’d already urged firefighters to save the façade of the 148-year-old structure, formed a plan to shore up crumbling walls, chased trespassers until a fence could be built and felt the sadness of a community that looked to the building as a symbol of Depot Town’s vitality.

But he also had to answer nearly non-stop calls on his two mobile phones, dealing with other aspects of his construction, demolition and rental businesses, even as he supervised crews dealing with securing and shoring up the property.

Wednesday, Beal said, “was a horrible day.”

Many of the people who stopped by the Thompson Block to see the damage wanted to share Beal’s loss.

“Thanks for trying,” said Keith Baker, quickly introducing himself to Beal and shaking his hand.

“It’s not over yet,” Beal responded. “As long as there’s a brick still there.”

The fire was a devastating moment in the building’s long history, which Beal became a part of in 2006 when he drafted a plan to bring apartments and stores to the structure, which had been long-neglected by a previous owner.

There have been hurdles, but nothing compared to having to deal with a massive fire - damage is severe enough that charred, fallen beams are visible through windows, and afternoon daylight shone through others.

Instead of wondering how bad damage is, Beal said, he should have been continuing to plan the historic building’s future.

Beal has a quote on a bid for the Thompson Block’s new roof sitting on his desk, he said. “And 16 skylights,” he adds. “I was going to order them this week.”


“It has to be saved”

Beal described the scene after Wednesday's fire as full of immense sadness.

People took pictures all day. At least 1,000 people stopped at the corner to look at the flames, then the smoldering remains, and finally the scaffolding as crews braced wood support beams against exterior walls.

Fred and George Beal - Stewart’s father and uncle, respectively - determined with an engineer earlier on Wednesday that the support system would keep the walls stable until they can do a more thorough evaluation in coming weeks. The exterior was first; soon the interior walls will be braced.

Beal, watching his employees navigate the scaffolding and beams, said the crews were risking their lives to do the work - the walls suffered such severe damage that, he said, any of the street movement could cause them to cave in.

But the crews also have recent experience doing similar work: Some had just stabilized an eight-story façade at the otherwise-demolished Fine Arts Building in Detroit.

“They need to stabilize the structure,” Beal said, “so we can make some choices.”

He knows that many people look at demolition as a possibility. He runs a construction company and could do the work quickly.

But he also said it’s his favorite building - “it’s other people’s favorite building,” too, he says, pointing to bystanders - and he expresses stubbornness about the future.

“It just has to be saved,” he said. “Every option besides demolition will be considered.”

That message drove his conversations with firefighters after he arrived on the scene at about 3 a.m., alerted by Linda French of the Sidetrack Bar and Grill and then the fire department.

“Any other building in any other location, they would have razed it to put the fire out,” he said. “When I got here … I started negotiating on the site (to keep the façade).

“… They were of immense help in saving what is left.”


Not giving up

There’s a fascination with the building in the neighborhood and the city.

Some of it’s expressed in the somber looks on faces as people pause to view the damage and consider what may come next. People view the building as a landmark, a historic property, a place where a restoration done right can have meaning for the city for years to come.

Others have been less respectful.

Beal said he’s troubled by reports in online comments that people had trespassed in the building. He said tools were taken during a recent break-in, and he’s had to chase people off of the premises, even on Wednesday as firefighters still tried to clean up from their work.

And he knows that there are people who will wonder about the owner’s role in a fire. “You don’t work this hard at something…” he starts, before declining to finish the statement.

He also scoffs at comments about loose wires: “We had a brand-new temporary electrical system installed (over a year ago) … with professionally hung lights.”

Beal keeps pausing as people he knows walk by where he’s sitting. One was a former tenant. Another has done work for him.

One asks some questions and notes that the building had been there since 1861.

“It’s still there,” Beal reminds him.

What will he do with it, the man asks.

“Build 10,000 square feet of commercial property and 16 luxury lofts,” Beal answers.

That’s the plan - the same plan Beal formed in 2006, the same one he took to lenders that year, and then again in 2007 and early this year. The same plan marketed to investors and tenants.

The same plan that Depot Town wanted to see come to fruition after years of wanting better for that building.

The project was finally moving ahead after months of stagnation. Credit markets have dried up, and the Thompson Block got caught up in that early.

Beal spoke with frustration last year and early this year about the lack of capital - at first for this type of redevelopment project, now for most projects. That he was able to amass a property portfolio in Ypsilanti - including a historic home that he hopes to turn into his personal residence - over the same time drove his business growth.

That frustration pales to his experience on Wednesday.

“I view this as the major setback in my business career,” Beal said. “But it’s not one that I’m fearful can’t be overcome.”

And he won’t express hesitation about moving forward, from whatever ever step the remains of the building will allow.

“I’m not going to mourn,” Beal said, “because the project is not dead.”


Paula Gardner is Business Leader for AnnArbor.com. Contact her by email or call (734) 623-2586; follow her on Twitter. 

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Comments

amccauley

Thu, Oct 1, 2009 : 8:41 p.m.

It saddens me to hear that some people believe that the fire was somehow the fault of the owner. Stewart values all of his properties and would never do anything to jeopardize a project, especially a project that means so much to him. For those who are asking, "if it means so much to him, why is it taking so long to complete?" Well, there are things called permits, zoning codes, licenses and so on that need to be taken care of in a specific order before major work can be done; when it comes to construction things are done in phases. I for one hope that the Thompson Building can be saved and restored. I know that Stewart will do everything within his power to make it happen. Best wishes Stewart!

larryw

Fri, Sep 25, 2009 : 8:09 p.m.

Hi Paula, Neat article. I'm surprised, however, to read of the owner's passion for the building. My memory is admittedly weak, but I believe he's owned the property for years yet as far as I could tell hadn't made much progress restoring it. So if he is/was so enamored with the structure, what was taking so long? Perhaps if things had moved along and there were actual renters in the building the fire would not have occurred. That's hard to say, of course. Maybe next time it would help to dig a little deeper, but then again, A2 news is now a blog, so how about looking into what I'm talking about and doing some follow up?

old east sider

Fri, Sep 25, 2009 : 5:16 p.m.

This is a very questionable fire. I was in the building a few years ago and any timber left was water logged due to the leaking roof. There were extension cords all over the place. As I have said before, we no longer respect Mr. Beal or the slum investor that owns our train depot but we on the east side have hope eternal and wish both of them luck.

Mike Ambs

Fri, Sep 25, 2009 : 7:57 a.m.

I'm hopeful after reading this post... the morning of the fire I had asked Beal what would happen to the building, and his answer wasn't exactly a friendly response. But I can understand his stress. But the brief conversation did fill me with a fear that this was the end of the Thompson Building. I began to worry it would be knocked down within the month. And gone forever. So... reading this is a huge relief. I hope this community realizes what it almost lost... and I hope they come forward to find ways of getting Beal the support he is going to need to fix what's left of one our oldest and most interesting structures.

faypatri

Thu, Sep 24, 2009 : 8:30 p.m.

I have known stewart since he was a young entrepreneur with tremendous drive and huge dreams. 10 years later looking back on all he has accomplished it is just amazing. I know he will overcome this because that's just stewart, he is relentless. Yet, it hurts me to see this happen to him and I hope that everyone supports his cause because acts such as these hurt the entire community.

adameichner

Thu, Sep 24, 2009 : 5:20 p.m.

As Emily LaTella used to say: "well okay then"

Paula Gardner

Thu, Sep 24, 2009 : 4:09 p.m.

Also, we just posted a piece on the history of the Thompson Block by James Mann - along with some photos that show the building over the years. Anyone following the property may find it interesting reading: http://www.annarbor.com/passions-pursuits/the-thompson-blocks-place-in-ypsilantis-history/

Paula Gardner

Thu, Sep 24, 2009 : 4:06 p.m.

Giving everyone the benefit of the doubt is crucial - particularly in the case of a fire investigation, which could take weeks to conclude. Investigators faced plenty of delays yesterday due to the condition of the building, but we do have a reporter monitoring the progress.

adameichner

Thu, Sep 24, 2009 : 3:35 p.m.

good hard hitting journalism. hello? "others were less respectful"? While I give everyone the benefit of the doubt, from jump street you had professional fire investigators indicating that they had serious concerns about the rapid spread of the fire. That it may have indicated an unusual situation afoot. And the only coverage that gets in this article is: "others were less respectful" and an assessment by the writer that when the building's owner was asked about this issue, he declined to finish an answer. Way to go Woodward and Bernstein. When you get done eating the marmalade out of their hands, please try and go back and do a follow up article which has perhaps, a less gauzey romantic feel to it please. You can write the movie screenplay later. Thanks so much.

JoeM

Thu, Sep 24, 2009 : 8:20 a.m.

I appreciate Beal's tenacity and hope that he is able to see this project through. Best of Luck!