A historic Harford County landmark is awaiting national recognition, while a local investor plans to restore it to its former glory.
The Graystone Lodge at the intersection of Belair Road and Old Joppa Road dates back to 1780.
But Bel Air architect Steve Bavett has its white-tablecloth restaurant days from the 1930s and ?40s in mind as he works to restore and renovate it.
The site, abandoned for at least 50 years, has been nominated for recognition in the National Register of Historic Places. Bavett is awaiting approval before he moves forward with the restoration of the rest of the building.
Bavett, a lifelong Bel Air resident, had passed the building many times while driving to his parents? home and leaped at the opportunity to purchase and preserve it in 2001.
“I knew nothing about the history of the building; I just admired the architecture,” he said. “The owner sold me the building on the premise that it be restored. … I was actually one of the lowest bidders.”
The National Register, part of the National Park Service, flags properties that are deemed historically or culturally significant after an application and review process, said Peter Kurtze, an administrator with the Maryland Historical Trust. There are 77 National Register sites in Harford County already.
National recognition would allow Bavett to apply for state and federal preservation tax credits of up to 20 percent, Kurtze said, as long as he met certain standards for maintaining the historical character. The application for National Register status will be reviewed by the state Oct. 12.
Bill Bates, a local historian and author, said Graystone Lodge?s heyday came prior to 1930, when Bel Air Road ? also known as U.S. Route 1 ? was the main north-south thoroughfare and brought plenty of travelers to the restaurant and inn.
Though he plans to add a modern, up-to-code kitchen to the building, Bavett said he is trying to stick with the building?s historical character.
“Every boulder, every piece of wood had been made on-site,” Bavett said of its original construction. “I?m not out there whittling beams, but there are certain aesthetic things required by the Maryland Historical Trust.”
Bavett plans to reopen the stone building as a restaurant run by Chef Demitris “Chewy” Nicolaidis, who earned his fame with a critically acclaimed barbecue restaurant in Baltimore and guest appearances on WBAL television and radio.
