NewTown Macon plans to move to Poplar Street in May

In about a month, NewTown Macon will move a short distance to its new downtown home.

NewTown Macon is a nonprofit, public-private partnership that seeks to reinvigorate downtown by helping to increase residents, businesses and a sense of place.

Its offices have been located for the last decade at 479 Cherry St., but come May, it plans to move to 555 Poplar St., according to a release.

During the past few years, Poplar Street has attracted private investment, and 555 Poplar "was one of the few dilapidated buildings left on the street," the statement said.

After an earlier plan by a developer to buy the building fell apart, NewTown decided to buy the building and complete the rehabilitation itself.

Besides a contemporary office suite, the building includes 12 rental lofts, called the Johnson Lofts, on the second and third floors. NewTown will occupy 4,500 square feet, according to a newsletter by Piedmont Construction Group, which renovated the building. Tenants for two of the apartments are expected to move in next month.

The building also includes co-working space for entrepreneurs.

"Through much of our mentorship we have seen that today's entrepreneurs work smaller and more corroboratively than businesses that came before," the release said. "We believe that co-working space is a necessary amenity to keep attracting and growing businesses downtown. Revenue from renting these lofts and co-working memberships will further support our mission of occupying storefronts, adding lofts and improving aesthetics."

Full renovation is scheduled to be complete by May.

To contact writer Linda S. Morris, call 744-4223 or follow her on Twitter@MidGaBiz.

This story was originally published March 30, 2016 at 5:56 PM with the headline "NewTown Macon plans to move to Poplar Street in May ."