Jeff Congdon, a local developer, has purchased two downtown Greenfield properties that have been empty and in a state of decay for years, including the former Carriage House Building on West North Street in Greenfield. Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024. Tom Russo | Daily Reporter
Jeff Congdon, a local developer, has purchased two downtown Greenfield properties that have been empty and in a state of decay for years, including the former Carriage House Building on West North Street in Greenfield. Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024. Tom Russo | Daily Reporter
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GREENFIELD – Two historic properties in downtown Greenfield which have sat vacant for decades were recently purchased by a developer known for his passion for enhancing the historic district.

Jeffrey Congdon, principal of Axia Urban in Indianapolis, has acquired the former Brandywine Steakhouse property at 20 W. Main St. and the former carriage house at 23 W. North St. within the past three months.

Both buildings date back to the 1800s.

The new acquisitions brings the total number of historic buildings Congdon owns in the area to eight.

Congdon also owns the L.C. Thayer Building at 20 E. Main St. — which houses Greenfield Fitness — and the Wooden Bear Brewing building at 21 W. North St., among others.

The brewery property was once home to a local opera house.

The adjoining property to the west, which Congdon recently acquired at 23 W. North St., served as the carriage house where those attending the opera would park their carriages.

The former carriage house has been in an ongoing state of disrepair, even after the brewery sparked new life into North Street when it opened in 2014.

Congdon said he’s looking forward to breathing new life back into the building as well as the former steakhouse property, which sits directly behind the carriage house to its south.

Congdon purchased the former steakhouse building from Jay Hine, and the former carriage house from Jay Cook.

He said he’s in the process of cleaning up both buildings before showing them to potential tenants. His first line of work is repairing a hole in the roof of the steakhouse.

Despite the damage, he envisions the possibility of a bright future for both properties.

According to Greenfield’s planning director, Joanie Fitzwater, Congdon is no stranger to bringing dilapidated properties back to life to boost the local economy.

She said he did the same for the Wooden Bear Brewing property — the former opera house-turned-auto service shop — which featured a severely cracked concrete floor and crumbling brick walls when Congdon bought it.

Since leasing the property to Wooden Bear, Congdon said he’s been thrilled to see the business thriving and the space often packed with patrons.

Although he lives in Indianapolis, Congdon said he gets a special thrill from renovating properties in a small town like Greenfield, which reminds him of the village where he grew up in Wickford, R.I., in a 19th-century home.

“I always loved that small town feel,” he said.

Over the past 12 years, Congdon has purchased and renovated a number of properties in downtown Greenfield, including a row of connected properties at 16, 18 and 20 N. State St., a duplex on Fourth Street and a five-unit apartment building on Grant Street.

Congdon also owns several properties outside of Greenfield, including the building that is home to Bocca restaurant in Indianapolis.

He also developed a historic building that is now home to Guggman Haus Brewing Co. in Indianapolis, where he converted the former Boyle Racing Headquarters into a thriving brewery and event center.

Congdon has been in the development business with his wife, Linda, for 25 years. Their son, Christopher, works for them as a development manager.

As the family focuses on fixing up their latest two acquisitions in Greenfield, Congdon is hopeful the right tenants will come along to bring exciting new retail or restaurant offerings.

He especially hopes someone will want to open a restaurant in the former Brandywine Steakhouse building, which has sat vacant for 20 years.

“When somebody pointed that number out to me I was flabbergasted,” said Congdon. “I’d like to see what it would look like back in the day.”

Brigette Cook Jones, a local historian who serves as executive director for the Hancock County Tourism & Visitor Center, said the former steakhouse property played an integral role in the history of downtown Greenfield, and has been home to a number of different businesses over the years.

Some of previous tenants include: White and Service; Vanderbarks; Ordie’s Shoes; Glass House Restaurant; Le Sabres Restaurant; Italian Gardens Restaurant; Buccaneer Inn Restaurant; and the Carmichael Restaurant and Lounge.

Jones said the iconic Brandywine Steakhouse opened in December 1972.

The original owners were Loren and Lynn Cooper, who sold the business to Judy and John Davis in 1977.

Judy started out as a waitress in the steakhouse, and would eventually become the sole owner. She later remarried and was then known as Judy Reimann.

The Brandywine Steakhouse closed on Dec. 16, 2004, which Reimann attributed to competition from chain restaurants in town and declining clientele.

Jones said developer Jay Hine later purchased the building with the intention of putting in another restaurant, which never materialized, so the building has sat vacant for two decades.

The former carriage house at 23 W. North St. has an equally rich history, said Jones. The first ones to rent the property were Level and Roy Jeffries more than 100 years ago.

The brothers owned a livery on State Street and advertised boarding horses in the old “Opera House Barn,” Jones said, citing a newspaper clipping from 1908.

Later their advertisements would offer not only horse boarding but also “autos and light storage.”

In the early 1910s the property would become a Ford dealership and garage owned by E. S. Wagner, but that venture didn’t last long, said Jones.

In 1925 the building was acquired by another auto dealer, Howard Holt, who ran Holt Motors there for many decades until closing in 1986.

Holt first sold Leader cars, which were designed in Hancock County, and later acquired Buick, Oldsmobile, Pontiac & GMC brands.

His business once operated out of three adjoining properties – at 21, 23 and 25 W. North St. – the first of which now houses Wooden Bear Brewing Co. and the last of which has been torn down and replaced with a parking lot, since renamed The Living Alley.

Congdon is looking forward to seeing what stories will unfold next at the two properties he recently acquired.

Those interested in learning more about them can contact him at axiaurbanllp.com.
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