Optometrists reveal bank building plans
by Emmitt B. Feldner of the Review staff
PLYMOUTH — What’s new will be old again in downtown Plymouth.
The Plan Commission got its first look Thursday at plans for restoring the former Bank First National building at the corner of Mill and Stafford streets, and they liked what they saw.
Optometrists Tim and Cheryl Ziegler, owners of Advanced Eye Care, are purchasing the building from the bank, which closed their offices there last fall, and plan to convert it into a state-of-the-art optometric facility.
But while the inside will be modern, the Zieglers plan to restore the exterior to its early 20th century look.
Cheryl Ziegler noted that the building, built in the 1800s, “has been kind of covered up. We plan to remove the metal (siding) and restore the brick on the top stories. If our budget allows, we would like to take the stone (siding) off the bottom story as well.”
The plan, she said, would be to have the original brick façade on the top two floors and a limestone-like finish on the first floor for a look that would be similar to the Exchange Bank Coffeehouse building across the street.
“I don’t think people even know there are windows upstairs,” in the building, Tim Ziegler added, noting that they are now covered by the metal exterior but will be replaced as part of the remodeling project.
“This is a landmarked building in the middle of downtown and bringing it back is only a positive step,” Mayor Donald Pohlman commented.
“We wish you well,” added commission member Bill Barbieur.
The Zieglers plan to remove the drive-through canopy behind the bank building and the glass foyer that was added on there, restoring the back of the building to its original look as well.
That would provide extra parking, which led to another item on the commission’s agenda, recommending approval of the city’s purchase of 11 parking stalls at the north of the lot behind the bank.
“It’s an opportunity for the city to invest in downtown with additional parking stalls that would be available for the City Club and other nearby businesses that don’t have much on-street parking,” Pohlman explained.
The row of parking stalls is on the other side of what is apparently a city alley behind the bank between Stafford and Division streets. As a separate lot, the parcel is too small for anything to be built on, Pohlman added.
Currently, the city is offering to pay $31,000 for the parcel. Pohlman compared that to the $25,000 the city paid in 1992 for a similar parking lot at the corner of Mill and Smith streets.
But commissioner Peter Rammer objected, asking, “Who needs parking there, besides City Club? It seems like a lot of money. There’s other things you can do downtown besides this.”
His was the only vote against recommending the purchase to the council.
