Originally Published May 5th, 2009

I still well remember meeting Josh and Kelley Keller when they first came downtown. First Josh as he jogged around the neighborhood while I kneeled in the flower beds at Kaye and Don Kole’s house and then a few months later, Kelley at a party thrown by neighbors Jackie and Ken Sirlin. A delightful couple with a growing family, Josh and Kelley are two beautiful people in their 30s and Josh is the managing partner for the local Verizon retail outlets here in Savannah with a teritory of coastal Florida, Georgia & South Carolina. As thier family grew, the Kellers simply ran out of room at the beautiful townhouse they are now selling on Troup Square which they renovated and expanded over the past several years. Not everyone realizes how many families are being raised downtown. I know of lots of them! So many people are under the impression it just happens on the Islands or Southside but I want you to know that kids can be brought up just fine in the Landmark Historic District, thank you very much!

There were not many opportunities for a house with room for expansion like the one they found at 233 Abercorn Street. The Molina House had been languishing for several years and when the most recent owner decided to sell it in 2006, at the peak of the market (originally asking 1.9milion). They priced it a wee bit too high from the begining and as the market got cooler and cooler they began to drop the price (not fast enough!) and It finally sold for $965,000 on May 19th, 2008. But it is not a bad thing for Savannah when this happens, especially judging by what is now occurring almost a year later. What was around 5,000 square feet when they bought it will be about 6,800 heated and cooled square feet when they finish! Everytime I look I see something new; granite replacement front steps, enclosure of the additions on the back, a new wrought iron exterior stair rail made to look exactly like a historic one would have looked. It just goes on and on and the inside will be fully renovated as well, naturally. Free standing with a side garden and streets on the other three sides, they have lots of great light here, not true with so many of the row houses in Savannah. Congratulations to the Kellers on a great project, another enhancement we can all be proud of in Savannah’s Landmark Historic District!

Originally Published April 9th, 2009

Trendsetting New York and New Jersey residents Richard and Joanna Rothbard have recently re-launched their AN AMERICAN CRAFTSMAN store at 223 West Broughton Street in Savannah. The Savannah store, which originally opened in 2008 and is their forth location, has just had a major face lift inside and out including new windows for the upper floor, the use of which is still to be determined. (Should they go retail upstairs like the adjoining Urban Outfitters Store? Or make more interesting residential loft space with perhaps a roof garden?)


Unlike so many of the nationals locating in Savannah these days, An American Craftsman is actually a family owned company with a forward looking vision for a vibrant future in Savannah. They also have two beautiful locations in New York City at Rockefeller Center (60 West 50th Street) and the Sheraton Manhattan Hotel (790 7th Ave. @ 52nd Street).

Additionally, if you are going to be up north this summer, visit Richard and Joanna at one of the outdoor shows they organize every year in the Berkshires about 20 minutes from the store they have at Stockbridge, Massachusetts.

Lots of interesting things continue to move forward in Savannah, a city worth landing in, investing in and living in!

Until Next Time,
Ron Melander