Aspen’s historic Main Street Bakery building getting fixed up
The Aspen Times
Anna Stonehouse / The Aspen Times |
The architects and contractors working to restore the pale pink-and-brick building at 201 E. Main St. — the former home to Main Street Bakery and future site of Oakville Grocery — knew the task would be no small feat.
Beneath its quaint facade, however, the 128-year-old, 9,000-square-foot building is “in much worse condition than we had anticipated,” David Rybak said.
Rybak, an architect in the valley for 30 years, said, “I’ve done a number of historic remodels and this is probably the biggest repair I’ve experienced.”
In essence, the building lacks any foundation and the brick walls are “structurally unstable,” Rybak said.
In September, contractors began shoring the walls and removed the wood floor beneath the building in an effort to add a new foundation.
“What we’re doing right now basically is what we can to avoid the building from falling apart,” said Tom Lester, a contractor on the project.
“It’s quite labor intensive,” Rybak added.
Managing partner David Roth said, “It’s always been our mission to preserve the historical value and integrity of the building.”
“We want to make sure that nothing is temporary (and) that that building is around for at least another 200 years or more,” Roth said.
Rybak said “depending upon the full scope of the project,” the plan is to open Oakville Grocery in the winter of 2018.
“It’s truly a great opportunity to save this resource. It’s really the first major building that you come to when you come into town,” Rybak said. “It’s always been a great local establishment and we’re really looking forward to renovating it, rejuvenating it and bringing it back to something the town’s going to be proud of.”
