Preservation Month: Bradley Circle

At the end of 2012, Historic Columbus wrote a letter to then Mayor Teresa Tomlinson asking for her consideration to establish a stakeholder group to address the need for corridor improvements along Second Avenue. The expansion of Second Avenue in the early 1980s left a sense of disinvestment. The widening of the road resulted in demolitions of historic housing to establish Second Avenue as a commercial and social services corridor. Following the mayor’s approval, the group was established, and Historic Columbus became the project administrator for the effort to be centered on City Village.

City Village is a community built early in the 20th century to house mill workers along the Chattahoochee River. Originally, the neighborhood consisted of modest homes and a few large mills. As the mills closed, many of the homes and commercial structures fell into disrepair, and the area became blighted.

It is hard to imagine an area in the Chattahoochee Valley Region with more potential, at this time, than City Village. Its western border is the Chattahoochee River. The neighborhood overlooks the Riverwalk and will enjoy the best seat in the house watching rafters navigate the urban whitewater course. It is also located adjacent to Uptown Columbus, which is experiencing a tremendously successful revitalization thanks to numerous private and public investment - most recently, City Mills, the Columbus Campus of Mercer University, The Banks at Mill Village, Hotel Indigo, and Riverfront Place.

In 2013, the City of Columbus set aside funds to develop a City Village Master Plan to include redevelopment plans, a look at infrastructure and areas for new infill development. Historic Columbus was chosen to serve as the administrator of the master plan phase alongside project chairmen, Marquette McKnight and Phil Tomlinson, and 70 stakeholders.

Within the 200-acre City Village neighborhood and just north of City Mills is Bradley Circle. This area boasts the most well-preserved collection of historic homes in City Village. Built in the early 1900’s, these mill village homes are roughly 900-1,500 square feet in size. Originally designed to provide housing for employees of City Mills and Columbus Manufacturing Company (now Lofts at Riverwalk Place), this neighborhood lies on one of the most scenic stretches of the river near Columbus. Bradley Circle, as a whole, is the most significant community within City Village for its architecture and city planning design.

In 2014, with the help of the Muscogee County Land Bank and Wells Fargo, Historic Columbus purchased 2910 Bradley Circle (pictured above). The house was then sold to a sympathetic buyer and the proceeds from the sale were returned to the Biggers Revolving – Redevelopment Fund.

While the acquisition of 2910 Bradley Circle marked the beginning of Historic Columbus' investment in Bradley Circle, our efforts grew with the involvement of HCF’s Director of Planning and Programs, Justin Krieg, serving as Project Administrator for what would become The Mill District in 2018. HCF's engagement in this role began in 2014 and continued until 2021, when Lauren Chambers was appointed as the first Executive Director of The Mill District.

Our second property in Bradley Circle was a generous in-kind donation to Historic Columbus, 2937 Bradley Circle (pictured below). We continued to rent the property to a long-time tenant until he was ready to purchase another home in Waverly Terrace thanks to NeighborWorks Columbus. At that point, HCF sold the home, and the proceeds were returned to the Biggers Revolving – Redevelopment Fund.

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During this period, private investors began to see the potential of Bradley Circle. Three shotguns along 29th Street, pictured above, were purchased and renovated. This transformation then encouraged five additional individuals to do the same.

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The third house Historic Columbus acquired was 2901 1st Avenue (pictured below). With assistance of a major gift, the vacant home was purchased in 2020. Historic Columbus identified this property as a key piece to helping set the trajectory of the Bradley Circle area in City Village. This historic duplex, c.1922, was built as housing to support workers who were employed by the neighboring textile mill, Columbus Manufacturing. Historic Columbus restored the exterior and then sold the property to an individual who completed the restoration of the home. The proceeds were returned to the Biggers Revolving – Redevelopment Fund.

Past HCF President Jack Jenkins inspired the fourth HCF investment, also known as “the shotgun shuffle.” This project began with the purchase of 2807 Bradley Circle by HCF Past President and Director Emeritus Mary B. Bradley. The house was structurally beyond repair and soon demolished. HCF was given the now vacant lot by Mrs. Bradley for it to become the site of a new home for Bradley Circle.

Historic Columbus worked with architect Jack Jenkins and contractor Tim Gregory to relocate and renovate a shotgun house originally situated at 207 35th Street. The land lots in Bradley Circle are shallow and wide, presenting challenges for accommodating long shotgun houses. This is where Jack’s “shuffle” technique came into play. The shuffle involved detaching the rear third of the shotgun and repositioning it to the side, thereby creating a more suitable cottage with a front porch. Once the shuffle was completed and the exterior renovation finished, the house was sold, and the interior was transformed back into a single-family home. The proceeds were returned to the Biggers Revolving – Redevelopment Fund.

Above: The shotgun house on 35th Street and the house on the move.

Below: The finished "Shotgun Shuffle" at Bradley Circle.

Helping fill in the gaps of historic neighborhoods with appropriate threatened historic structures is something that Historic Columbus has been doing for 59 years.

The fifth house to become a part of the Biggers Revolving – Redevelopment Fund is located at 2906 Bradley Circle (pictured below). It was purchased by HCF in 2023. Like “Shotgun Shuffle” house, 2906 Bradley Circle received a full exterior rehabilitation and reframing of the interior to delineate a new floor plan.

The photo below shows the house (left) when HCF purchased it - covered with vinyl siding. Once the siding was removed, it was clear the original stucco had significantly deteriorated, and termites had moved in to cause destruction of the wood underneath. The picture on the right shows the in-progress removal. The photo below is the "after" of the house with new exterior siding and new stucco on the reestablished front porch.

The house was sold as a clean dry shell for the new owner to complete. The proceeds were returned to the Biggers Revolving – Redevelopment Fund. Unfortunately, the new owner experienced a devastating personal tragedy and has not been able to move forward with the interior renovation work. HCF has been in contact with them and is working on a potential solution for the completion of the house.

The last property purchased by Historic Columbus earlier this year is 2902 Bradley Circle (pictured below). Work has started on the exterior of the house with removal of the chain link fencing, tree trimming, and trash removal. Our next steps will be to paint the outside and replace the roof. Once that work is completed, the HCF Preservation Committee will evaluate how we will proceed from there.

Historic Columbus made its first major investment in the Bradley Circle community in 2014. Since that time, the area has made some big strides thanks to a lot of private investment and numerous preservation partners. It is these partnerships that return the sense of place to Bradley Circle and sense of pride in its part of the story of Columbus.

Historic Columbus has revolved five properties in Bradley Circle and is currently working on the sixth. Progress in Bradley Circle has been made possible by the confidence and generosity of the HCF Membership and donors, as well as the leadership of the HCF Board of Directors.

Below are the numbers related to the revitalization work in Bradley Circle. The growing impact of these numbers can be seen today in the neighborhood. There is more work to do. I hope you will help us by driving through and giving us your thoughts on future projects.

Bradley Circle by the Numbers

Number of HCF-owned Houses in Bradley Circle: 6 houses

Major Gifts Received for Bradley Circle: $522,758.00

In-Kind Contributions Received for Bradley Circle: $86,170.00

HCF Total Cash Investment in Renovation Work: $474,239.46 (to date)

Proceeds Returned to Biggers RRF: $276,103.00 (sale of 5 properties)