Press "Enter" to skip to content

Airbnb project eyed for Main-Oak site

An innovative type of housing appears headed to downtown Mount Airy after the recent sale of the massive Main-Oak complex to an entity based in Durham.

It involves plans by the new owner — Mt. Airy One, LLC — to develop Airbnb, also known as Air B and B, units on the property.

Its former owner, Burke Robertson, a longtime local businessman, described this as “overnight” rentals that he believes will be complementary to a boutique hotel scheduled to be developed on the former Spencer’s industrial property two streets over.

“I think this is a good positive move for Mount Airy — and downtown Mount Airy,” Robertson added Tuesday.

Two three-story structures sitting side by side containing nearly 50,000 square feet combined, owned by Robertson for more than 20 years, were involved in the transaction occurring in August. Those are the Main-Oak Building at the corner of North Main and East Oak streets, and Main-Oak Emporium on the corner of Oak and City Hall streets.

The Loaded Goat, a sports pub and grill occupying 3,000 square feet which is located within the latter, will remain intact with the change in ownership, according to Robertson.

“A hot market”

Robertson thinks the timing is right for the Airbnb concept on a large-scale basis in Mount Airy.

“It’s a pretty wide-open market right now,” he said. “It’s a hot market.”

Airbnb refers to a rental idea that dates to 2007 in San Francisco, where two roommates in need of money loaned out rooms in their apartment to persons attending a design conference because of hotels being overbooked.

They gave their endeavor the name “Air Bed and Breakfast” since guests slept on air mattresses. The concept later expanded to other locations where short-term vacation rentals of cabins, beach houses, unique homes and even boats are offered to travelers.

It tends to incorporate a more personalized “host” approach than other types of accommodations, but differs from traditional bed and breakfast establishments due to no morning meals necessarily being provided.

Robertson said he had entertained plans of converting the Main-Oak buildings into condominiums or other housing-type uses including overnight rentals himself, but declined to pursue the Airbnb project because of Father Time.

“I’m aged out — I’m getting too old,” he explained.

In 2017, Robertson had announced the closing of the Main-Oak Emporium retail store on the property, accompanied by a desire of his wife and co-owner to retire from running the day-to-day operations of that business.

When the Main-Oak Building and Main-Oak Emporium were up for sale, the Burke Robertson and Associates real estate agency had marketed both as being suitable for retail, office, potential residential and event center uses. A combined sales price of $1,860,000 was listed for the structures.

The former owner is comfortable turning over the reins for the housing project now at hand to Mt. Airy One, LLC, for which the registered agent is listed as Jeffrey A. Benson of Durham.

“I’ve seen the plans,” Robertson said concerning what’s envisioned for the Main-Oak site.

Benson could not be reached for comment.

The timetable for the Airbnb project is unclear at this point.

“Obviously, it depends on everybody working with them,” Robertson said of various government approvals that might be needed by the ownership group, such as from the city government.

He says work could begin “somewhere around the first of the year.”

Mount Airy Planning Director Andy Goodall, when contacted last Friday, advised that no plans or other paperwork pertaining to the project had been received by his office thus far.

Source


Source: https://www.mtairynews.com

Be First to Comment

    Leave a Reply