Our New Furniture Showroom Building

If you know our Owner Katie, you know how much she loves Grundy Center. It’s where we live, work, and raise our kids. As the Owner of 319 Decor + Design and the soon-to-be Elizabeth Lea’s on main street, Katie has a deep passion for investing in the town.

We have also had a warehouse building for over a year to showcase furniture pieces, but there have been a few limitations. The space is not handicap accessible, nor does it have a bathroom for our customers or employees.

When a historical building came up for sale on main street, Katie jumped at the opportunity to purchase it. Finding 4,000 square feet of space on main street is unheard of! She is thrilled to pour more love into the community of Grundy Center.

Current State

While there are decades of history, the building has been abandoned since 2020 after most recently being the local Pizza Hut. Both the interior and exterior need some work to bring back the charm it once had.

The History

Originally built in the late 1800s, the building of 602 G Avenue was first divided into an east and west half. The west half was home to the James T. Wilson Meat Market; later, in the 1920s, it served as the Exclusive Shoe Shop and Leo Reisz Variety Store; and by the 1930s, it functioned as a barbershop for Labor Day Johnson and George Peters.

The first occupants on the east side facing main street were Jacobs Brothers Department Store and shoe store. Then, in 1904, Banse and Lamar, the grocery store, moved into the space (see photo below).

Interestingly, Banse and Lamar married sisters Belle and Maggie Wallace. At first, Belle was engaged to marry Billy Bockes of the local feed shed. Right before the wedding, which was set for November 28, 1884, she backed out.

Then, Billy took Mary Isobel Berry for a buggy ride and proposed to her instead. She accepted, and they married immediately. Billy solely did this to spite Belle. He called his new wife Mary “pet,” and due to this, few folks even knew her given name.

Soon after, Banse and Lamar married the Wallace sisters, and the grocery business flourished.

Katie’s Vision

Katie’s vision for the space is to house the furniture showroom in the front half of the building so people can stop in to touch, feel, and see the beautiful pieces. This will give folks an opportunity to purchase furniture and take it home the very same day. While the main 319 Decor + Design storefront will continue to focus on decor, the new building will feature more furniture and art pieces.

Katie is currently working on applying for a grant to help restore the building to its original charm and functionality. The process of applying takes a lot of time and intentionality in order to tell the story of the current state and the future designs well.

The Exterior Design

In the front of the building, the windows really are the star of the show. The plan is to add in six windows on top of the current windows and create a new storefront to replicate the original building.

Katie’s top priority is to bring the building back to its historical roots by fixing the facade that is currently covered by a coat of applied stucco. This includes tuckpointing and filling in each window with arched details. To finish the exterior, Katie’s plan is to paint the entire facade a brick red and add lighting and signage.

On the side of the building, the plan is to remove all of the crumbling styrofoam, rebrick the back left corner and stucco, and then paint it all red to match the front. Right now, the staircase is a structural issue and needs major reconstruction.

For the side entrance, Katie wants to replace the current door with a glass commercial door to mimic the front.

The Interior Design

The building is broken up into three spaces, as shown below. Space A will be 319’s new furniture showroom, and the grant will allow us to add a new dividing wall and hallway. The plan also includes building out the bathrooms to have one accessible from Space A and one from Space C. The remaining space above the bathroom in Space C will be a storage closet.

The plan also includes adding another column (shown in red) that was removed for the Pizza Hut kitchen years ago but will improve the safety of the building.

Space A will feature the 319 Decor and Design Showroom, with a beautiful arched hallway leading to the bathrooms and Spaces B and C.

Space B will house a furniture storage room for the furniture showroom in Space A. This area is connected to the front and will have a shared hallway with Space A. The flooring will be part LVP and part subfloor to allow for future changes as the business grows.

Lastly, Space C is designed to be an 800 square foot rental space for a future business to be in. This area has access to the basement and upstairs of the building and has its own bathroom.

For now, the plan is to build walls and put in subfloor so the flooring can later be tailored to the specific business type.

The Challenges

Because the building has been neglected for over six years, it is in pretty rough condition. One of the main challenges is simply keeping the building from falling over after years of sitting vacant.

On the financial side, the challenge is addressing the present problems of the building in order of importance, while working with current funds. The process of restoring the entire building will take time to ensure it’s done properly and wisely. This is also why the grant is so important!

As of now, Katie’s focus is to breathe new life into this beautiful building on main street and get the front doors open. She is excited to have the furniture more accessible to customers with an improved location.

What to Expect

During Felix Grundy Days, we will have an Open House of the space to share the current progress. Our team is so excited to showcase the beautiful furniture on main street for customers to see and feel in person!

Be sure to stop in to the new location of 319 Decor + Design furniture to see the space yourself!