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1920s general store may face demolition

The owner of the Antioch General Store wants to start from scratch with a new building, and possibly a strip mall.

By BEN MONTGOMERY
Published June 23, 2006

THONOTOSASSA - To get to the Antioch General Store, head east until you see trees, then drive north past a roadside sign that says, "Chickens and Roosters For Sale."

The door stands wide open.

"This," said Crystal Noriega, wearing a Jeff Gordon NASCAR shirt and smoking a cigar, "is country."

On the wall, a deer mount.

On the counter, smoked alligator sticks.

On the window, a photograph of a man and woman comparing the size of their baby to that of a fish.

Built in the 1920s, the Antioch General Store hasn't changed much. But spray foam and hope can't hold a place together forever.

Antioch's owner plans to demolish the old building to make way for a new one, with modern qualities behind an antique facade. That's why a woman came by recently to snap final pictures. That's why another called this morning, cursing that nobody wants a new store.

****

Thomas Seitz bought the Antioch General Store in July, knowing it needed work. Since then, it has been one problem after another.

The roof leaks. The walls have holes.

"Sometimes Rocky will be carrying feed for a customer," says Noriega, who manages the store, "and he'll fall right through the floor."

And the rats. They were awful at first, before Noriega fed a litter of pinkies - baby mice - to his cats Emmers and Jasmine, and taught them to hunt. Now the cats chase the rats.

Not long ago, someone broke out the front window, tied the burglar bars to the back of a pickup and stepped on the gas. The thieves made off with some odorless mosquito repellent, a few flashlights and a little more of Seitz's peace of mind.

"It's too easy to break into," he says.

A new store would change all that. It would have air conditioning and a security system and a roof that doesn't leak. And a better bottom line.

Besides, says Noriega, the people make a place, not the walls.

****

A few weeks ago, Seitz stood in work boots and a camouflage ball cap before the Hillsborough Historic Resources Review Board on the 26th floor of the County Center in downtown Tampa.

"We're looking at building a store similar to what it is now," he told the board. "It's just falling apart. We have to patch the roof up every time it rains."

The board wanted to talk to Seitz because the store is listed on the county's inventory of historical places.

Though the store is on the list, it's not protected by the list, Chairman Dan Corda said.

"If you want to apply for a demolition permit, I don't think you would have any problems," Corda said

If Seitz and Noriega could insure the old building, maybe they could save it. Or if they could restore the original structure without going bankrupt, they would.

****

Noriega grew up around here. She used to stop in when Antioch was truly a general store, back when you could find milk in the freezer. It's more of a feed store now, but it hasn't lost its flavor.

Dawn Perkins, who tends to Noriega's horses, drops in to visit. Her daughter, Josie, slips in wearing roller skates.

"I got you something," Noriega tells Perkins.

Perkins opens a yellowish envelope and pulls from it a gift certificate to a new massage parlor that opened on the east end of Fowler Avenue.

"Do they have women?" Perkins asks. " 'Cause my husband won't let a man touch me. He won't even let a man do my feet."

The plans for the place - and they're still plans - call for building a strip mall on an adjacent piece of property. The feed store would occupy a portion, alongside a hair parlor, perhaps, and a restaurant.

Then Seitz wants to rebuild the general store as a replica of the original, if he can get the financing.

The woman who called to yell at Noriega told her no one would shop at a new store, but a quick survey of customers on a recent afternoon suggests otherwise.

"I think they definitely need a change," says Perkins. "Besides, most of the people who think it's historic wouldn't be caught dead in here."

Deep in the afternoon, the customers are gone and the cats are sprawled near the door. The store sounds only of the buzz of electric fans.

Ben Montgomery can be reached at bmontgomery@sptimes.com or 813-661-2443.

[Last modified June 23, 2006, 07:04:05]