Total renovation due for downtown Royal Oak building

Pedestrians walking along Main Street in downtown Royal Oak might notice the historic storefront with the hole in it. A big hole in it. A hole so big there are only walls and a roof. Meet 309 Main St.Work began on the 2-story storefront a few weeks ago. It has since grown into a tear-out of the interior, and the builder has started fresh with a couple of walls and a roof.”Once they got into it, they might have underestimated the repairs they needed to make.” says Joseph Murphy, a city planner with Royal Oak. One of the partners in the development is Sergio Easmjian, owner of downtown-based Metals in Time. An attempt to reach him about the project was unsuccessful.The circa 1907 building has 9,800 square feet evenly divided between two floors. Its ground floor has served as a retail space, with office space upstairs. The city has given its blessing for the project to basically re-create that design.”It will be brand new this time,” Murphy says.Source: Joseph Murphy, a city planner with Royal OakWriter: Jon Zemke