On Wednesday, November 29, Macon-Bibb County demolished a dangerous, blighted building on Clayton Street that used to be Bateman & Wade Grocery on Clayton Street. The store permanently closed its doors nearly 10 years ago and fell into great disrepair over the years. The owner donated the property to the County earlier this month, for plans of demolition. 

 “This place had a lot of history and will be missed by everyone who lived in this neighborhood, but this new opportunity to create a space that honors the history of this neighborhood, the collaboration with the neighboring communities, and what this neighborhood represents for the larger community,” said Andrea Cooke, whose mother grew up in Historic Pleasant Hill Neighborhood and now works in it to address mental health issues and food insecurity. 

While it was once a place to buy groceries, fresh meat, candy, and other specialties, and was a place to catch up with a neighbor, it had long passed its heyday. In its final years, it had fallen into disrepair and become a site for criminal activity. Since closing its doors, neighbors would still report criminal activity around it, and the building itself began to crumble. There are no set plans for the empty property, other than becoming a greenspace for the time being 

“It’s a corner market once accessible to both black and white neighbors from Historic Vineville and Historic Pleasant Hill, but as violent incidents on this site stacked up, it only served to further divide these two neighborhoods,” said Mayor Pro Tem Seth Clark.  

“When this property comes down, it’ll give this corner and this transition line between Vineville and Pleasant Hill new life,” said Vineville Neighborhood Association (VNA) President Will Davis. “The VNA is excited to work with Mayor Miller, Commissioner Clark, and representatives of Pleasant Hill to come up with what’s in store for this property.” 

“This is one of those moments where we can all come together,” said Mayor Lester Miller. “We want to make sure this truly represents all of Macon-Bibb County.”