Three Historic Homes Moving as Part of College Hill Redevelopment Efforts

Click to view photos of the homes that will be moving

There will be a parade of homes around Tattnall Square Park in October, as three historic homes (pictured above) are relocated from Coleman Avenue to Oglethorpe Street to make room for Phase II of the Lofts at Mercer Village. All three homes are owned by Mercer University and will be restored and sold as part of Historic Macon’s neighborhood revitalization work in Beall’s Hill. The relocation is scheduled for Oct. 8, weather permitting.

The parade will take an impressive feat of coordination and engineering to move the homes, including the temporary relocation of power, cable and telephone lines, as well as the removal of two traffic signals and the construction of a temporary bridge over an existing railroad bridge on Oglethorpe Street that would not be able to withstand the weight of the homes that will be perched atop massive steel beams to for the move. The homes are currently located at 1658, 1674 and 1690 Coleman Ave. and will be relocated to 1035, 1065 and 1071 Oglethorpe St.

The houses will be restored and sold to homeowners. Historic preservation easements will be reserved to ensure that the homes are always owner-occupied preserved. The homes will be placed in the same order with the same distances from the street and between the houses to preserve their relationships with the street and each other.

The homes are listed on the National Register of Historic Places, were built as part of the planned development of the Huguenin Heights neighborhood. The homes have held the memories and lives of Maconites for more than a century. They will now be restored for a new generation of Maconites to care for, enjoy and pass down for the next generation.

Historic Macon welcomes you to watch the houses move! Don't miss out on the opportunity to witness something this exciting. Feel free to bring a picnic blanket to Tattnall Square Park to see the relocation in action (map below). We will be sure to keep you informed about the move! Check here on our blog or visit our website, Facebook or Twitter for up-to-date information.

To read this article in full with more details, click here.

Map of house move

View Mercer House Move in a larger map

Photos will be posted soon.

Article by Jennifer Mayer and Josh Rogers of Historic Macon and Mark Vanderhoek of Mercer University.

Posted in: Beall's Hill,mercer house move