Home depot: Grovetown embraces its history in designing its new events center

Grovetown is getting its fondly remembered train depot back – sort of.

Construction bids are due Aug. 16 for contractors who want to help the growing Columbia County city build a new community center "modeled loosely in appearance" after the historical depot that was torn down more than 50 years ago.

Local leaders have discussed creating a city-run event space as early as 2015, according to Grovetown Public Information Officer Jordan Johnson. Inspiration came from older Grovetown residents who still miss the iconic rail station that stood at the corner of Old Wrightsboro Road and Robinson Avenue.

"In designing the new one, it was our intention to pay homage to what Grovetown used to be and how far we've come," Jordan said. "It's just a matter of inspiration, and taking that inspiration and transforming it into something beautiful that our community can use and that repreents our city."

The proposed events center would be at 104 E. Robinson Ave., catty-cornered from the old depot site. Clifford Memorial Presbyterian Church is at 110 E. Robinson.

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Plans for the one-story facility show a 6,099-square-foot building with a mechanical mezzanine and a tall window monitor, which is a small roofed structure on the ridge of a larger roof.

Grovetown's original depot was built in 1879, two years before Grovetown became a city. A bigger depot was completed in 1891 costing $5,041.74, about $174,000 in today's dollars.

Passenger trains filled with locals and out-of-town vacationers traveled to Grovetown until the last local train from Augusta ran its final route in 1930. In 1942, Camp Gordon, now Fort Eisenhower, moved troops and supplies through the depot.

Augusta-to-Atlanta passenger train traffic, which still passed through Grovetown, ended in 1968. The railroad ended its service at the depot in 1970, and the building was torn down in 1973.

This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Home depot: Grovetown embraces its history in designing its new events center