In Ames, major changes are coming to a historic building in the downtown area over the next few months.
The funding for renovations to the building comes from a grant through the state of Iowa.
The grant was awarded to the Main Street Cultural District in Ames and is valued at over $75,000.
The money is used to preserve and restore the history found throughout different buildings in downtown Ames.
One of those businesses, London Underground, will fix-up its outdated facade without having to re-construct or demolish anything that’s already there.
The building was built back in the late 1800s and has since been transformed into a cobbler, a tailoring shop, a jewelry store, and most recently, this British-style pub.
The pub says many of the original window sills are beyond repair and need to be replaced with new limestone or cast stone.
The owner says he hopes this renovation will attract more locals to his business.
“Restoration tends to be more expensive, or rehabilitation tends to be more expensive than re-doing something. So for me, I know that we feel very fortunate that we have the opportunity to provide some historic preservation and to keep some of the character of the original Main Street alive” says Jess Clyde, the owner of London Underground.
Clyde plans to update the upstairs level of the building, and create a new loft-style apartment, similar to the ones that were built in Des Moines’ East Village District.
Clyde told Local 5 he’s thankful to be able to get this work done through grant money. That means no money will come from the state’s budget.
He expects the renovations to be finished sometime in fall 2018.
