MLILY Mattresses in Albany, GA

ALBANY, Ga. (WALB) - We’re seeing it more in parts of Albany, new businesses are taking over old dilapidated buildings that once were abandoned.

Retail space available is being replaced by “coming soon” signage in places around Albany.

One construction is underway at an old plaza located at the intersection of North Slappey and Gillionville Road, and while it becomes another car wash in town, city leaders tell WALB it will also become a driving force to bring in more economic development to this area.

“We had one hotel that was a real problem hotel with prostitution and drugs. That hotel has been torn down and now you’re starting to see some of these projects come to life,” Albany City Commissioner Chad Warbington said.

The property will be one out of at least five new car washes around town. Some residents say they want to see bigger cooperations coming in to balance out the economic need in the area.

“We’ve got enough car washes, and I think we could have used something else for people to use,” an Albany resident said. “The cooperations that left, bring some of those cooperations back, something that people can actually use to make money.”

Warbington said whether it’s a new restaurant or a car wash being built, all those projects combined will generate $10 million of economic growth for the community.

“Property value, jobs, more amenities for us as citizens to be able to shop and eat and not to mention the sales tax revenue that our city and county are able to benefit from,” he said.

Down Slappey Boulevard out towards Dawson Road, there is also a new restaurant, a Thai Restaurant, a car wash, a tire shop and a new cookie shop, along with other developments that don’t have signs up yet.

Milan Patel, a local developer, said taking old buildings and transforming them into new businesses like this one is what takes Albany to the next level.

“Albany needs additional services,” Patel said.

Patel helped demolish the old hotel where the new car wash is going. He says while being in real estate development is a huge risk, the payoff of getting rid of dilapidated properties in Albany is worth it.

“When we see something that’s not being used at its greatest potential is where we see the opportunity,” he said. “Slappey Boulevard, Dawson and Westover, right, you know it’s a very nice area. It has lots of traffic. And when you see buildings like that not being used to their highest potential, and across the street their thriving, it leads you to investigate what the possibilities could be.”

Warbington said it will help attract new industries to the area.

“You take a property that was blighted and abandoned, and now you have an investor that’s willing to invest multiple millions of dollars in a commercial development, that’s a good sign for Albany,” Warbington said.

Projects like the car wash are expected to be up on running in the next few months.

Copyright 2023 WALB. All rights reserved.

ALBANY, Ga. (WALB) - An Albany bishop is opening a Christian bookstore in Albany.

Bishop Frederick Williams is the senior minister at the Gethsemane Worship Center. He is the new owner of a Christian bookstore and gift store in Albany.

“It’s located right here on Dawson Road, 2231 Dawson Road and it’s just filled with Christian books and all kind of self-help books, things that we need to live a a great life,” he said.

Williams said that Albany needs a Christian bookstore right now.

“Well, you know, we’re a Good Life City and we have spent countless of time trying to improve our community and we noticed the closing of most bookstores throughout the US, especially in Georgia. I think the closest one to us is about 60 miles. And so if we’re going to really be the Good Life City, we need to invest back in our community, that they would have a place they can come in and read books, drink coffee, get a latte, or just have a wonderful time. And so we wanted a personal store. People can run in and get communion whatever they need. They can get the materials here locally,” he said.

The bookstore will also be a center where people can gather and learn. Williams said they want people to feel like they are at a good Christian faith environment.

“We don’t want it to be a Black thing, white thing, Hispanic thing. This is our Christian store, the whole city. And my plan is to continue to bring us together. As one big family, he had all been in surrounding,” he said.

The bookstore opened on Wednesday, Nov. 1 and the ribbon was cut at 10 a.m., and the store will be open from that point on.

“And what we don’t have, we have a big suggestion box and we’re going to make it happen, as per the needs of our own community,” Williams said.

Many people are also ordering books online, and Williams says Albany needs a physical bookstore where people can peruse the books.

“Yeah, because at our time when we order online, we already know what we’re ordering, but you get a chance to come in and see the different authors and the different material and as well as we’re going to open up a section here for any local artist. I mean, authors that have written a book and want to get it into the store. It’s just a good place to come and find new things that we may not have thought about. So that’s the purpose of having a facility,” he said.

Copyright 2023 WALB. All rights reserved.

Local developers with Indusa Investments tell WALB they are still determined to make an investment that could help save the Albany Mall

ALBANY, Ga. (WALB) - Christmas is just a few weeks away, always a critical time for retailers, especially for stores in shopping malls across the country.

At the Albany Mall, WALB counted more than 20 empty storefronts as of early December. While walking through the mall, we met Rachelle Bitterman and her husband who used to own two stores in the mall.

They closed down about 20-30 years ago, first opening up their doors when the mall first opened. As they were walking through looking at all of the vacant stores, they were telling me they were depressed by what they were seeing.

”Very sad, very down to see so many, probably more stores closed and boarded up than open,” Bitterman said.

As you walk through the Albany Mall and can see from the images below, this is why Bitterman is unhappy with the current state of the mall.

Autoplay

”You were required to open at 10, and you were required to stay open until 9 and you had to be open 7 days a week. It seems like times have changed.” Bitterman said.

Milan Patel, a local developer says times have indeed changed, and it’s going to take change for the Albany Mall to advance.

”At some point, it will need to be reimagined, and that day is going to come sooner or later. And unfortunately, for that to happen, it probably needs to get closer to death than it needs to be filling it back up.” Patel said.

Patel and Bitterman both agree the trend of failing malls is a reality across the nation.

”Malls in general is not a problem of Albany. Malls in general is a problem across this nation.” Patel said.

“I think it’s because people, most people want to shop and they want to go to a particular store, so they want to drive to it, park, go in, get what they want, and come out. Whereas in the mall, you’ve got to walk all through it.” Bitterman said.

Indusa Investments purchased 16 acres of property from Sears when they closed down a couple of years ago. It extends from the Chick-fil-A in front of the mall to the back where Moe’s is located.

Indusa sold 6 of those acres to a local regional hotel entrepreneur two years ago.

”For us, when that opportunity came to acquire the bankrupt assets of Sears, we thought it would be a good opportunity for us to make a decent business move out of it, and also protect the prosperity of that part of the community,” Patel said.

Patel adds, that community members should think about what’s not here and think about what it could bring to Albany.

”There’s a lot of things that Albany doesn’t have and hopefully our efforts will bring about prosperity for us and bring about prosperity to this community. So, we’re being patient because we don’t want to put the wrong thing there,” Patel said.

We’re working to find out if or when the adjacent hotel might be built.

Copyright 2023 WALB. All rights reserved.

Albany plans to revitalize a once-thriving historically Black commercial district near its downtown.

The city’s Harlem neighborhood used to be the social and economic hub for Blacks in Southwest Georgia.

But it suffered from massive disinvestment over many decades.

Now the city is backing a private developer’s plans to build a retail and residential hub.

The $20 million project draws on current themes in economic development — and area history.

“It’s understanding that you’re going and rebuilding and starting from what did exist,” said Latoya Cutts of the Harlem Renaissance Corporation. “And for people who don’t know that that exists, it’s kind of putting that vibrancy back into the community."

The project sits right next to the city’s new $15 million main transit station, a few blocks from Albany’s waterfront and near an expansion at Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital that will need student housing.

It also promises to bring a trendy food hall to the site of a beloved former restaurant, Carter’s.

“It was a staple in the community and everyone remembers it,” Cutts said of Carter’s. “So you’re taking some elements of what was and adding some of those new elements that people are longing to see and that don’t current exist in Albany.”

The food hall has space for seven restaurants, while the residential buildings are designed for 52 apartments and 10 townhomes.

Architectural plans also show 14,000 square feet of retail and office space, plus an event pavilion, courtyard and stage.

The Albany City Commission pledged $2 million in loans to the project last month.

Commissioners also pledged to work out a memorandum of understanding with the corporation over the project’s scope and details.

Demetrius Young, who sits on the commission, remembers when the area was vibrant with Black-owned businesses, including some that were owned by his family members.

“I used to walk up and down those streets and go get my hair cut at my aunt’s barbershop,” Young said. “And I’d walk to my dad’s motel. So it’s an area that’s near and dear to my heart, as it is with many people. It’s part of the fabric of Albany’s African-American community.”

City officials see the development as way to draw new residents, visitors and business owners into a community hard hit in recent year by Hurricane Michael and the coronavirus pandemic.

“It provides a way for us to get people back to the downtown area,” Young said. “I’d like to see new families and people come bring this area to life once again.”

City officials hope to break ground on the project early next year.

featured

PHOTOS: Dougherty vs. Westover Basketball in Albany, Ga.

As featured on

ALBANY — The No. 7-ranked Dougherty Trojans (5-2) built a huge first-half lead Tuesday night…

native advertising

Upcoming events

Sat 6 Sun 7 Mon 8 Tue 9 Wed 10 Thu 11 Fri 12 Sat 13 Sun 14 Mon 15 Tue 16 Wed 17 Thu 18 Fri 19 Sat 20 Sun 21 Mon 22 Tue 23 Wed 24 Thu 25 Fri 26 Sat 27 Sun 28 Mon 29 Tue 30 Wed 31 Thu 1 Fri 2 Sat 3 Sun 4 Mon 5 Tue 6 Wed 7 Thu 8 Fri 9 Sat 10 Sun 11 Mon 12 Tue 13 Wed 14 Thu 15 Fri 16 Sat 17 Sun 18 Mon 19 Tue 20 Wed 21 Thu 22 Fri 23 Sat 24

See all events Add your event