Saving a Part of the City’s History

Few people in Lynchburg know Larry Cluff. But in a couple of years he could become well known as the guy who saved the old Piedmont Mills building on Jefferson Street from the wrecking ball. In the process, he will have contributed another step toward saving an important part of downtown history.

Cluff, who lives near Richmond, and a business partner closed a deal earlier this month to buy the more than a century-old structure that has had a commanding presence on Jefferson Street. The mill, which ceased operating in 1987, provided flour to troops during both world wars. Its predecessor supplied flour to the Confederate Army in the Civil War.

For decades, the mill provided a market for wheat grown by local farmers. While its exact age is uncertain, land records show it probably was built in the 1870s, although it operated in other buildings for as long as 50 years before that.

Piedmont Mills bought the structure in 1905 and the company later built the tall white silos that stand uphill from the mill. The silos were used to store wheat. One investor in recent years declared an interest in converting the silos into condominiums, but that never materialized.

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Cluff said recently he and his partner, Chris Chadick of Bethesda, Md., need to stabilize the building, obtain financing and then renovate it. Cluff wants to turn the upper floors of the brick structure into residential units with retail space occupying the ground floor.

Hal Craddock, one of the investors who sold the property, said the mill “is probably the nicest historic building, in terms of detail and character, downtown. It’s just a very, very important piece of architecture downtown (that) really needs to be saved.”

Craddock had wanted to renovate the old mill, but he and his business partners were tied up with developing the Craddock-Terry Hotel and Event Center just down the street.

Earlier this year, they learned that the mill could be a hazard to the hotel if it caught fire. The Lynchburg fire marshal confirmed that if the old building ever caught fire, firefighters would work to save nearby buildings but most likely would not enter the mill.

Craddock and the other owners decided they had to demolish the building. But before doing so, they gave it one last chance. A real estate agent started marketing it and Craddock asked the Lynchburg Historical Foundation to tell its supporters about it.

“You never know,” Craddock said, “when someone of means ... will say, ‘I’d like to be the guy who saves that building.’”

Cluff ended up being that person. He brings experience with historic renovation projects in the Richmond area, having converted an old mental hospital and fire engine warehouses into living spaces.

The developer said the mill’s architecture sold him on it. A number of dormers on the roof and the silos, he said, set the mill apart from typical rectangular-shaped warehouses.

He envisions commercial and residential units with views of the James River, which lies more than 80 feet below the top floor of the old mill. “That’s really unique, to have a really cool design that, quite frankly, most cities haven’t seen,” he said.

And Cluff and his partner will get the credit for being the guys who stepped up to give new life to the old Piedmont Mills flour mill. In so doing, they will have saved an important part of downtown Lynchburg’s past. The eventual restoration will be a welcome step in the continuing redevelopment of downtown. Cheers.