Blach's building

The Blach's building on the northwest corner of 3rd Avenue North and 20th Street was originally called the Hood Building. It was built in 1890 to house the Hood-Yielding General Merchandise Store and featured a deeply-profiled cornice and window trim, fancy brickwork and arched windows.

In 1910 it was converted into the 100-room Bencor Hotel.

In 1935 the building was completely remodeled in a modernist style by Warren Knight and Davis for Blach's department store. The arched windows were squared off, the cornice and window trim were stripped away and the brickwork was stuccoed over and painted off-white. The store moved into its new location in 1936 and remained until the mid-1980s. Since that time the building has been vacant.

In 2007 a $5 million renovation of the Blach's building was completed by the Carroll & Green Group on behalf of architects and owners Kenneth Owens and Franklin Woods of the Owens and Woods Partnership. 5,000 square feet of ground floor office space is being leased by MBA Structural Engineers. 18 one- and two-bredroom residential lofts on the upper floors were also included in the renovation.

References

• White, Marjorie Longenecker (1977) Downtown Birmingham: Architectural and Historical Walking Tour Guide. Birmingham: Birmingham Historical Society.
• Kent, Dawn (September 22, 2007) "Renovated Blach's site set for new lease on life." Birmingham News.