PERRY, Ga. — They say all good things must come to an end, and the end is here for a Perry landmark.
The New Perry Hotel is being demolished.
The demolition started Friday, with a focus on the right side of the building and to the motel in the back. By the end of the day, they'd begun progress on the left end as well.
There is a large black fence surrounding the demolition site. The owners, Triple P Holdings, got their demolition permit last Monday, and work started later in the week.
For months, people in Perry have reflected on memories of the New Perry Hotel. Perry locals started a group on Facebook to raise support around saving the Hotel.
Some cited its place on the National Registry of Historic Places as a reason it shouldn't be torn down. However, in June, city leaders and developers said its historic significance wasn't enough to keep the hotel standing.
City and owner findings show the hotel was in condition beyond repair.
Now memories are all people can hold onto. On Friday, crews removed appliances from the 99-year-old structures, while others rode in on bulldozers and pulled off the walls.
As the building fell, people around town told us they were sad to see the landmark go. It was almost as if the building was crying too - water spewed out of a broken pipe for a large chunk of the demolition.
Developers said they hope to give the building new life. In place of the fallen planks and construction trucks, they want to build a three-story building with space for shopping, apartments and offices.
However, the plans are not set in stone. The developers must present their redevelopment plans to the Main Street Advisory Board before laying a new foundation.
Earlier this month community development director Bryan Wood said that includes a lot of details on the structure.
"A site plan depicting the building footprint, parking, landscaping and other site improvements," he said. "Detailed drawings or sketches showing the views of all buildings facing public streets."
The full list is outlined on the Certificate of Appropriateness application on the city website.
People in town are still holding on strong to their memories. A group gathered near the Hotel Saturday night to reflect on the hotel and their time spent here.
We did reach out to one of the hotel owners for more details on a construction timeline, but they've not responded.