Newspaper to mini-mall: Times Square at Locust Street earns Main Street Alabama honor

Greg Bailey, The Gadsden Times
·4 min read
The exterior of Times Square at Locust Street, housed in the old Gadsden Times location at 401 Locust St., is pictured. Co-owner Clinton Melendez envisions it as a "one-stop shop" downtown.
The exterior of Times Square at Locust Street, housed in the old Gadsden Times location at 401 Locust St., is pictured. Co-owner Clinton Melendez envisions it as a "one-stop shop" downtown.

How did a real estate investor from Brooklyn, New York, wind up owning a prominent patch of downtown Gadsden?

Let’s just say that Meyer Bodner has an appreciation for history, and, in particular, historic buildings.

“I like to look at properties and see where the value is,” Bodner said in a phone interview. “I also like to be involved in restoring smaller American towns.”

That’s why when The Gadsden Times in 2021 moved out of its longtime home at 401 Locust St. into a smaller downtown location on Fourth Street, and the building was placed on the market for auction, it caught Bodner’s eye.

He purchased the property and with the help of co-owner, business partner and “godsend” (as Bodner described him) Clinton Melendez, set about rehabilitating and repurposing it.

Some of the renovations done to the old Gadsden Times location at 401 Locust St. that now houses Times Square at Locust Street.
Some of the renovations done to the old Gadsden Times location at 401 Locust St. that now houses Times Square at Locust Street.

What they produced is Times Square at Locust Street, a two-floor mini-mall with spaces for artists, boutiques, businesses, galleries, offices and more.

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And their efforts have garnered a Main Street Alabama Award of Excellence in adaptive reuse of an existing building.

Melendez accepted the honor at the organization’s awards of excellence banquet last month in Opelika.

“It’s definitely appreciated,” he said, looking back at the experience.

Getting to that level of recognition wasn’t easy; there were a variety of issues with The Times’ old building. “We saw a vision, but the cleanup and changeover were a challenge,” Bodner said, noting that Melendez, being in Gadsden, did most of the heavy lifting. “He put a lot of work into it,” he said.

Walls inside and out have been painted and new ceiling tiles have been installed, and all lighting has been converted to LED.

Historic photos and other Gadsden Times memorabilia have been displayed throughout the building, in homage to its former occupant.

And Melendez said Gadsden Museum of Art Director Ray Wetzel and his staff are in the beginning stages of painting a mural on the Fourth Street side (the “Mater’s Pizza side”) of the building.

“We’re pleased with the way this went,” Bodner said, “but we still have some things to do to it. But it’s very nice. We just need to get some tenants in there.”

Downtown Gadsden Inc. Director Kay Moore was one of those questioning why real estate in Gadsden would appeal to someone from Brooklyn.

“Mr. Bodner and I spoke several times about the possibilities for the building,” Moore said. “I was able to connect him with Clinton Melendez because he had expressed interest in the building.  We are excited about the future growth of merchants and services in the building, and look forward to seeing another expansion for downtown.”

Bodner said he finds rehabilitating older, historic buildings, instead of tearing them down, “rewarding,” adding, “It’s an artistic thing for me. I like to see people enjoying them, and hopefully, I can make some money as well.”

He’s currently involved in a similar project in Easley, South Carolina, west of Greenville, converting an old mill into a place like Times Square with multiple business slots.

“We want to make Times Square a destination in Gadsden,” Bodner said, “where people can come to different shops, or come get an ice cream or something, any day of the week — where they can get together and meet other people. Hopefully, it’s going to take off.”

There are three occupants at present: Eden Bath and Skin Care, a bath and body works vendor; Pichon Ralines, which sells pralines to companies as thank-you gifts; and a boudoir photography studio.

Melendez said a sale that will give occupants 90 days’ free rent if they sign a year’s lease is in the works; call 256-952-2175 for more information.

“Hopefully, by Christmas, we’ll be fully booked,” he said. “We want to be a final destination for retail and office space downtown.”

Main Street Alabama, according to its website, “focuses on bringing jobs, dollars and people back to Alabama’s historic communities.” Its revitalization efforts in downtown areas and neighborhood commercial districts include 32 Designated Programs (Gadsden is one) and more than 43 Network Communities

The awards banquet was part of LAB, a three-day conference for communities involved in the Main Street program.

This article originally appeared on The Gadsden Times: Hard work pays off for new owners of old Gadsden Times building