In the heart of Uptown sits a church that shows buildings can have second, third, and even fourth lives. 2700 Fairmount St. has a staggering price tag of $8.4 million, but its fascinating history and endless possibilities make that figure seem justified.
Previously used as a creative office space, it could also be a company headquarters, home, or multi-family living space. The building is zoned for a variety of retail, office, and single-family use, and it's in one of the best locations in Uptown, within walking distance to The Crescent, McKinney Avenue retail, restaurants, and everything in the Turtle Creek and Cedar Springs areas.
It, too, is an architecturally significant historical church designed by Herbert Miller Greene (architect of the very first Dallas Morning News building, the downtown Neiman Marcus, and other local landmarks) and his partner James P. Hubbell. It was completed in 1910 when commissioned as Westminster Presbyterian Church. The Beaux Arts structure has been carefully preserved and creatively renovated.
First a church, the building was then home to the Tech Wildcatters and was known as the Tech Church. The startup accelerator company moved in around 2010 and left in 2013. Real estate agent Bryan Crawford at Briggs Freeman Sotheby’s International says Ray Washburne owned it last, before the current owner purchased it in 2013. That owner, by the way, is in the fossil and mineral business, hence the huge dinosaur pictured in the sanctuary.
Because those sanctuary spaces are large and open, they would be ideal for a showroom or open-flow office space. The conference room or potential executive office space is perched high above the sanctuary-turned-showroom, enclosed in glass and surrounded by original plaster moldings. There are several criscross beams in this room, and the ceiling is a must-see of tongue in groove.
A two-story structure in the rear consists of 14 office suites, a sound studio, and several other open-plan office rooms. Uptown is slim on parking, but the lot across the street at 2518 Mahon St. is included and holds 20 cars, while there are seven spots in the side pull-in space.
There is a unique living area as well. As soon as you enter the church, to the left is the brides’ room with a bathroom in a small cellar below. To the right is a curious little apartment, with three floors accessed by spiral staircases and ladders. Up another attached ladder is a roof deck with an incredible view of Dallas.
Just imagine the possibilities.
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A version of this story originally was published on Candy's Dirt.
