Iconic Nu-Way plans for reopening after fire still on hold

A year and a half after flames destroyed Macon’s iconic Cotton Avenue Nu-Way Weiners, it’s still unclear when the restaurant might reopen.

The early morning blaze March 13, 2015, also damaged Nu-Way’s neighbor, an office building owned by Gateway 75 LLC. The Spivey, Pope, Green & Greer law firm had offices there, but moved out after the fire.

The Nu-Way and Gateway 75 buildings shared a common wall and ceiling joists. When the Nu-Way portion was demolished in July 2015, what formerly was an interior wall became an exterior wall for the Gateway building, according to a demand letter Gateway 75’s attorney sent to its insurance company in May 2016 seeking payment for damages.

The ceiling joists also must be repaired and a retaining wall must be built to manage the pressure formerly supported by the Nu-Way portion, according to the letter.

Much like the buildings were intertwined when they both stood, the 100-year-old hotdog restaurant’s plans to rebuild a downtown location still are linked to what remains of its neighbor.

Nu-Way president Jim Cacavias said the company also is waiting to hear the fate of Gateway 75’s building, and to see what may come of plans to develop the Willie C. Hill Government Center Annex across the street before deciding how to rebuild.

Gateway 75’s insurer, Seneca Insurance Co., paid $216,009 for interior damages, but hasn’t paid an additional claim filed for exterior and structural work, according to the demand letter.

The lawsuit Gateway 75 initially filed against the insurance company moved to federal court last week.

“The building is a total loss,” Gateway 75’s attorney, Duke Groover, said.

The cost to restore the property to its condition from before the fire would cost more than its value, according to the demand letter.

Gateway 75 has asked that a judge award the company $403,990 it contends the insurance company should have paid along with other damages and relief.

A separate lawsuit filed by the insurance company against an electrical company that installed a heater at Nu-Way and the heater’s manufacturer still is pending. Seneca Insurance Company has contended the fire was sparked by a defective heater.

Attempts to reach lawyers representing the insurance company weren’t successful Friday.

Macon-Bibb County spokesman Chris Floore said the county is in the process of selecting a developer to repurpose the government center annex, a high-rise office building in the middle of a triangle bordered by Cherry and First streets and Cotton Avenue.

The Bibb County Sheriff’s Office is waiting on renovations to be complete at the former Sears building, at the corner of Third Street and Riverside Drive, to move deputies out of the detective bureau at the former city hall and the annex, making room for other government offices to relocate and leave the annex, Floore said.

Deputies likely will move out in the next couple of months. The goal is to empty the remaining offices in the annex by early 2017, he said.

While waiting to see what happens with its neighbors, Nu-Way has considered some conceptual plans and has been putting effort into its newest restaurant, the one opened in Mercer Village in May, Cacavias said.

“We’re being hopeful and praying that things will clear up at Cotton Avenue so we can find what direction to go in,” he said.

This story was originally published September 25, 2016 at 9:31 PM with the headline "Iconic Nu-Way plans for reopening after fire still on hold."