Published: February 27, 2009 09:09 pm      

Matz-Milner is no more

Front of iconic hotel collapses

BLUEFIELD — The front section of an historic landmark on Princeton Avenue, the old Matz-Milner Hotel — collapsed Friday morning, leaving rubble strewn across the Avenue, and crushing the art deco entrance and lobby of the Colonial Theater. Authorities believe that no one was injured in the collapse.

“We were fortunate that there were no cars passing in front of the building when it fell,” Captain Richard Hodge said at the scene. Although no witnesses have come forward to say they actually saw the collapse, emergency responders do not believe there was anyone in the structure when the front section fell.

“We don’t have any reason to believe there was anybody there at the time,” Bluefield Fire Chief Tony Hodges said. “Just today, I have heard people say that prostitutes and people who drink some hung out there, but this is the first time I have ever heard of that, and never heard police talk about that either.”

Louis Bolyard, a member of the facilities management department of First Community Bank on Federal Street, was in his van in the bank parking lot when the front of the building fell. “I saw a big cloud of dust reminiscent of the building collapse in New York on 9-11. I thought a train had wrecked,” Bolyard said. “I ran to the rubble to see if there was anyone there.”

Leiane Gibson was working at First Community’s drive-through window when the building collapsed. “It rattled the (drive-through bank) building,” she said. “It sounded like a big gust of wind. I couldn’t really see what happened, but I saw people running in that direction and knew something was going on.”

“The drive-through has been closed as a precaution, but the main bank remained open,” Robert Buzzo, president of First Community Bank said.

Rhonda Sullivan, the owner of the 1911-vintage hotel building, was out of town when the building collapsed at 8:46 a.m., but Steve Tibbs, owner of the theater, was on the scene within minutes. “It was about the only example of art deco architecture left in Bluefield,” Tibbs said of the historic 1916 theater he owns, loves and has tried to save for the past several years.

“The theater was built for silent movies,” he said. “The lobby and marquee had the art deco features. There was a small part in the front of the theater that was most recently Colonial Jewelers, but had previously been a small restaurant and even a candy shop when it first opened. This is a sad day.”

Gerald Steele, the city code enforcement officer and head of Bluefield’s building inspection department said that Sullivan has been working to find grant funding to help her restore the historic structure, but has not been able to find sufficient funds for a complete restoration project.

“I was in the building along with the mayor (Linda Whalen) and an architect in January, to examine the structural situation to assess the extent of the damage and to determine if it could be saved,” Steele said. “Unfortunately, today we got an emphatic answer to our question.

“The building has been in distress for some time,” Steele said. “Rhonda (Sullivan) has worked to get grants, but she hasn’t been successful. With the partial collapse and the rain there this morning, we have a real mess.”

Steele did not speculate as to the cost of total demolition, but said some building contractors were there and looked at the situation. “The demolition costs are the responsibility of the property owner,” Steele said. “You’re not likely to see rapid progress on this project. We are in conversations with the state and with Department of Highways officials. Hopefully, we’ll have some good news early next week.”

Steele said when the Matz-Milner building fell, “it took down a significant part of Steve Tibbs’ building. There has been a concentrated effort to prevent this from happening, but it really is unfortunate. It’s as sad and gray as the weather has been today,” Steele said.

Whalen said that along with contacting state officials, the city has been in contact with U.S. Rep. Nick Rahall, D-W.Va., and State Delegate Don Caruth R-Mercer. “The building belongs to a private owner, but this (building collapse) effects a state highway and we also have public safety concerns. We, as a city, will play a huge part in getting it cleaned up.

Whalen said she doesn’t have a current figure for demolition costs, but said she recalled hearing figures several years ago in the $500,000 to $1 million range because of the asbestos in the building. “We don’t have the money to bring in a demolition crew and do it,” she said. Whalen said the Building Commission was set to discuss the building at its March meeting. “Condemnation of that building could have come from that meeting,” she said.

Bluefield Police Chief J.W. “Joe” Wilson said that road crews erected signs alerting vehicular traffic about the situation. “We’re stopping big trucks at Grassy Branch Road and routing them into the downtown on Cumberland Road,” he said. “We’re letting cars come in town, but they have to turn off Princeton Avenue on to Scott Street, then to Raleigh Street, to Federal Street and back to the avenue that way.

“It’s similar to what we had to do when the old brownstone on the corner of Princeton Avenue and Bland Street collapsed in November of 2007,” Wilson said. The old brownstone, or Pedigo Building built in 1895, initially served as a bank, but had been vacant for several years and was in the process of being deeded to the city when it collapsed on Nov. 19, 2007.

Robin Chapman, spokesman for Norfolk Southern Railway said the collapse, “had no effect on our (rail) traffic through Bluefield.”

Dr. C. Stuart McGehee, director of the Eastern Regional Coal Archives of Craft Memorial Library said the Matz-Milner is listed as “a pivotal structure in our National Register of Historic Places. The Matz-Milner Hotel and the Colonial Theater were such a classy part of Bluefield’s history. This is a sad day for downtown Bluefield,” he said.

— Contact Bill Archer at barcher@bdtonline.com