A Charlotte building that was more than 100 years old has been demolished

A building that’s stood on the corner of College and Stonewall streets for more than 100 years has met its end, demolished this week to make way for new development.

Officially called the Query-Spivey-McGee Building, the three-story structure at 600 S. College Street was originally constructed in 1902, though some parts were added later. It operated as a feed, seed and gardening store through the mid-1980s. The building has also served as stables, several agricultural supply stores (Charlotte Feed and Gin, Scott Feed Company), an auto repair shop, a mattress and upholstery company and a gardening supply company.

Most recently, the building was home to the law firm of James, McElroy & Diehl, which has since relocated to 525 N. Tryon Street.

Retail developer Asana Partners bought the building last year for $6.4 million and said it was exploring ways to reuse the brick building. But earlier this month, Asana sold the building to Crescent Communities, the developer planning a massive mixed-use project on the adjacent property. Real estate records show Crescent paid just under $6 million for the site (Asana is also buying Crescent’s retail space at this and other projects, so the sale is part of a larger exchange).

Crescent plans to sell the site to White Lodging, which is developing a 350-room luxury hotel where the old building stood. Brian Leary, president of commercial and mixed-use development at Crescent, said the building was too close to the street – set back only four feet from Stonewall – to be incorporated into the new hotel. Crescent is developing a 26-story tower, anchored by Ally Financial, on the main portion of the site.

Dan Morrill, consulting director of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Historic Landmarks Commission, said that body approved the request to demolish the building “reluctantly.” But, Morrill said, the longest they could have delayed the demolition would have been one year, and there wasn’t a chance of ultimately saving the building.

“The reality of that building is it has already been changed enough that it just wasn’t one of those buildings you go to the wall over,” said Morrill. “The value of that land became so overwhelming. There were so many economic forces against it.”

“I’m sad to see it go, but it’s going,” said Morrill. He said the building was a reminder of Mecklenburg County’s agricultural past, when uptown was a meeting place for farmers. His wife recalled buying chicks dyed pink there for Easter in the late 1940s.

“Farmers in their overalls came to College Street,” said Morrill. “In this preservation business, fundamentally you’ve got to be practical...The commission decided that’s one you just gotta let go.”

This story was originally published March 16, 2018 at 7:30 AM with the headline "A Charlotte building that was more than 100 years old has been demolished."