Rehabbers on move, Juice bar, masonry office planned for York

Most people would agree that a dollar doesn't go as far as it used to.

Not Sheldon Lloyd and Kenneth Oatman.

The two businessmen recently purchased separate downtown properties from the city of York for a buck apiece. But each will spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to renovate the historic buildings, which have been vacant for years.

Lloyd's building will include a new juice bar, retail space and a pair of two-bedroom apartments. He will occupy one apartment and rent out the other. Oatman's acquisition will allow him to move his masonry business headquarters from Baltimore to York.

The juice is loose

Lloyd is the new owner of a nearly 5,000-square-foot parcel of land at 232-234 W. Market St., York. He bought the three-story building from the city for $1 on Oct. 18. Lloyd and Oatman's buildings are in the Keystone Opportunity Zone.

The Keystone Opportunity Zone, which was signed into law in 1998, waives state and local taxes for businesses that develop in the esignated properties. The tax benefits expire in 2011.

Lloyd plans to split up the first floor - 750 square feet will be a juice bar, and 1,200 square feet will be flexible retail space.

Lloyd said he is unsure how many employees he will hire. The menu will include exotic tropical fruit juices and citrus blend mixtures, filled with vitamins, he said.

On the second floor, there will be a two-bedroom apartment that Lloyd will occupy; and on the third floor will be another two-bedroom apartment, which he will rent.

Lloyd estimates the renovation work will cost $250,000, and he expects the 125-year-old building to be complete in a year. The city is giving him a $122,500 grant, Lloyd said, and he will pay the remainder of the renovation costs with money he made by completing a similar renovation project in California, where he used to live.

Lloyd's building has been vacant for about five years, and formerly housed a porn shop and an art gallery - in separate store fronts.

Lloyd grew up in York, but moved to California about 20 years ago to teach industrial education, he said. While there, Lloyd worked as a computer consultant before he renovated and sold an old commercial property in Gilroy, Calif. He rented the building out to multiple business tenants.

Lloyd is glad to be back.

"As a kid, I used to run up and down this street and I loved it," he explained. "When I moved to California, I continued to keep my ears open for any business opportunities here. When opportunity knocked, I answered, and now I'm home again."

The knocking Lloyd refers to is Millersville University, his alma mater, contacting him and asking him to teach industrial studies there. Lloyd accepted, and began teaching in fall 1999. While living in Lancaster, Lloyd searched for a business opening in York, which he found.

Lloyd said he believes the location - near popular eateries like Speeder & Earl's Coffee Shop and Sam & Tony's will help him draw customers, too.

Libbie Falzone, owner of Sam & Tony's, an italian restaurant, noted there is already a juice bar in Sarah's Garden, a health food restaurant in the 100 block of North George Street. The facility is three blocks away from where Lloyd's operation will be, she added.

Yet, she does believe Lloyd has a chance of doing well because the location is thriving. "We have more foot traffic here than we ever did, and there aren't a lot of empty store fronts or residences," she said.

Fired up

Oatman, the owner/president of Oatman Masonry and Restoration bought the former Rescue Fire Station at 344 S. George St., York, on Oct. 26. Oatman plans to renovate the three-story facility, make it his company headquarters and use it as a showpiece for the historic restoration work he'd like to do more of.

Established in 1874, the brick building has not been used much over the past 25 or so years, and it shows. Since the firemen vacated the premises in the mid1970s, the majestic edifice has been used to store city lawnmowers - and collect dust.

Oatman said he will spend more than $100,000 on the rehab.

"I'll have a dozen of my guys helping me every weekend until it's done," he said. "And during the week, there will be four or five people working every night."

Oatman predicts it will take about six months to complete work on the project. He wants to begin working with some of the city's bigger construction players Kinsley Construction Inc. at 2700 Water St., York, Richard D. Poole Inc. at 150 Farm Lane Drive, York, and Wagman Construction Inc. at 3290 Susquehanna Trail, York.

If he succeeds, Oatman said he won't have to drive from York to Baltimore, and/or Washington, D.C., for work. Oatman estimated he travels between 700 and 800 miles a week in his pickup truck.

The 54-year-old, third-generation bricklayer has already done his fair share of traveling, having moved to Central Pennsylvania from Arlington, Texas, five years ago. Oatman said the industrial hub's beautiful historic brick and cast-iron architecture won him over.

"York's got a real working heritage and we're (his family) working people," he explained. "It's a perfect fit." Oatman plans to restore, not change, the building's historic look for him, his wife and his two sons to work in. If he succeeds in doing so, Oatman will receive a tax credit. He will add a 24-foot brass pole (like the one the firefighters used to slide down), restore the call box and its control panels, and begin reusing at least two of the building's fireplaces.

Oatman will store some equipment and trucks in the building's first-floor garage. The second floor will be primarily converted into office space, for Oatman to do most of his job bidding. The third floor will be a recreation/relaxation area.

The biggest challenge, Oatman notes, is repairing the bell tower atop the old fire house, 100-feet high. The old bell is at the Fire Museum of York County at 757 W. Market St.

"We don't intend to change the character at all, we want it to be as if the firemen woke up from a long sleep," he said.