Jul. 9—Decatur has two fewer city streets after the City Council voted Monday to vacate them for a planned business in one of the city’s oldest houses, a move that one councilman said smacked of favoritism.
Portions of Grove and Sycamore streets, which run on the east and west sides of the historic Rhea-McEntire home, are now privately owned by McEntire LLC and Gobble-Fite Lumber Co.
Local developer Yogi Dougher is working with owner Libby Sims-Patrick to turn the home, one of four buildings in Decatur to survive the Civil War, into an event center.
A Decatur native, Sims-Patrick, of Atlanta, and her husband Carl Patrick, purchased the 6,000-square-foot historic structure on Oct. 14, 2020, through McEntire LLC.
The home, construction of which began in 1824 and was completed in 1836, sits on 2 acres about 100 yards from the southern bank of the Tennessee River. The home was used as a hospital during the Civil War.
Sims-Patrick in 2021 planned to turn the second oldest home in Decatur into the centerpiece of a boutique hotel, upscale restaurant and event center.
Dougher said he is “facilitating” the project for Sims-Patrick since she lives in Georgia. He said she changed her mind on her original plan. Now they’re turning the house into an event center where she can host weddings, parties and other gatherings.
An architect is also working on the home. They plan to add a porch and deck to the building.
“The home really is structurally quite sound,” Dougher said. “Part of the foundation needs work, but that’s normal for a house of that age. It’s really built like a fortress.”
On the recommendation of the Planning Commission, the City Council approved vacating the streets by 4-1 votes. Councilman Billy Jackson voted against the motions.
Jackson said he doesn’t understand why they would just vacate the two roads.
“That’s just giving property away,” Jackson said.
McEntire LLC and Gobble-Fite received the portion of Sycamore Street that runs on the west side of the Rhea-McEntire home.
City Planner Tommie Williams said the city reserves a portion of the property as public drainage, utility and telecommunications easement.
Jackson said he doesn’t have a problem with McEntire LLC using the street for parking, but he doesn’t want to just give it to them when he knows “they plan to use it for profit.”
In a separate motion, the council also voted to vacate Grove Street, which runs on the east side of the home.
Grove Street has been used for years by Gobble-Fite Lumber Co. The 91-year-old company put a fence across the road years ago to claim it as its own even though it remained a city street, Nathan Tomlinson, a civil engineer with Pugh Wright McAnally, told the council at the work session.
Williams said the owners are now “going through the proper motions to get it vacated.”
Jackson said just because Gobble-Fite fenced off and used the street as it own for many years “doesn’t make it right. I don’t think it’s wise for us to vacate property and not ask for compensation, especially when this company has used the street for so long without compensating the city.
“So — as Nathan said last week, ‘They’ve had it 100 years behind a fence’ — we should just give it them?” Jackson said. “My question is, if a person just fences off a property, is that what we’re going to do from this point on — are we just going to give it to him?”
Jackson said “the street is owned by citizens and, if they want to buy it, I wouldn’t have a problem with that.”
He said the issue “boils down to giving special favors to certain people, groups or entities where the average person wouldn’t get that consideration.”
Dougher said he was surprised by the opposition after going through the city process that includes meeting with many of the city leaders and the Planning Commission.
Councilman Hunter Pepper said Gobble-Fite has taken care of the road for a long time.
“Since they’ve maintained the area and nobody has said anything, I don’t have a problem with giving them the road,” Pepper said.
Council President Jacob Ladner said he went and looked at the two roads in November when the project first went before the Planning Commission.
“They literally have a fence that blocks Grove Street, and it’s been there a long time,” Ladner said. “I don’t think people even knew it was a city road. They’ve been using the street that literally goes nowhere as their property.”
Ladner said he’s OK with giving up the two roads for a long-standing business and a possible new business.
“I’ve always took the stance since I got into office that I want do whatever I can to support businesses in the city,” Ladner said.
Councilman Carlton McMasters said there’s a balance in development. The city may vacate a street, but developers also build streets in new subdivisions that become city streets at no cost to the city.
“I don’t think this is a huge loss, especially since they’ve (Gobble-Fite) used this street for years,” McMasters said.
— bayne.hughes@decaturdaily.com or 256-340-2432