After sitting abandoned for 10-15 years, the tallest building in Franklin County (6 storeys, which is pretty big for this particular county), the Wood Building is/has being/been renovated to include a bank on the ground level (People's National Bank, based in Mt. Vernon, IL and has locations in the metro east and downtown St. Louis), and condos filling up the rest of the 6 floors.



The lofts are not much different from what you would see in St. Louis, very modern, except for the fact that you will not have many decent dining or shopping options within a 30 minute drive (*sigh*).



The lofts website is located @

http://bentonsquarelofts.com/



I posted this because anyone familiar with Benton and/or Franklin County would probably be surprised at such a development in Benton.



Edit; the picture posted was still in its abandoned state.

I think Benton's Square is beautiful. Thanks for the pictures. I have been there many times.

Strangely, Benton is one of the few downtowns in Southern Illinois that I haven't seen.



In the pictures, it looks pretty good. Yeah, most of the tenants of these buildings wouldn't appeal to the people of this forum, but at least the downtown is attractive and the streetscape is intact, both of which are serious problems for downtowns big and small across this country despite the attempts to redevelop them in the last 30 years or so.



The Wood Building is especially cool- and I'm glad to hear it's going to be turned into condos.

^ Wow! You weren't kidding! It's a great buy for someone who wants a unique living space yet doesn't want to give up living in a small town.



I assume this is one of Benton's signature buildings if not "the" signature building of Benton. These developments tend to do well even in smaller communities, as some longtime residents have an emotional connection to the building, and as transplants from larger communities may still want an urban living space even if they're no longer in an urban area. It's encouraging to see the sixth floor units have already sold as well.

Hey I am not expert but I would suggest this guy review his floor plans a little more. Second bed rooms are too far from baths, I would suggest adding a second bath in some if not all. One floor plan has the master bed opening to the kitchen.





If your architect hasn't done a loft conversion before it may well be very worth the money to have somebody who has review the plans. A couple of grand up front can save big cabbage down the road.

I love small towns, and Courthouse Squares in particular. I enjoy taking road trips, discovering small towns like this. And I always stop at the local historical society museums.

The job is almost completed. People are living in the lofts and the bank has moved in. There was a building that was damn near attached to the Wood Building on the back that housed the local Elks chapter. They tore it down and put in a bank drive through. Over the drive through is a large patio (about 3 stories above ground level) for the tenants to share (have barbecues, whatever). It's actually pretty awesome. I'm pretty impressed.

They're looking to build a new courthouse for Franklin County in Benton.