Savannah law firm Weiner, Shearouse, Weitz, Greenberg & Shawe, LLP, recently completed substantial renovations to the firm’s building at 14 East State Street to meet Historic Savannah Foundation criteria.
 
After a substantial iron cornice piece fell from the roof edge of the three-story building eight years ago, the firm elected to reroof the building, reinstall a cornice that meets HSF criteria and approvals, restore stucco and repoint brick as needed, and repaint the entirety of the building. After several months of scaffolding covering the face of the building, the firm was able to proudly unveil the restored façade of the building in August and reveal the newly installed cornice exhibiting the architectural detail found in historic and archived photos.
 
Chatham County Tax Assessor records indicate original construction of the building now known as 14 East State Street occurred around the year 1870, and it has become a fixture in the Downton Savannah business community. The law firm of Friedman, Haslam and Weiner, which would later become Weiner, Shearouse, Weitz, Greenberg & Shawe, LLP, first acquired the building and adjacent parking lot in 1971 and began occupying the building a year later after renovations were completed.
 
In 2001, the firm successfully acquired the adjacent two-story building and renovated the addition to create passageways between the two buildings as well as a main entrance and lobby on the ground floor.  The combined structures now known as 14 E. State Street currently houses 15 attorneys and approximately 30 support staff in the general practice of law.
 
Weiner, Shearouse, Weitz, Greenberg & Shawe, LLP elected to utilize local contractors to complete the structural renovations. Several local businesses contributed to the success of the renovations to the exterior of the building, including Greenline Architecture, Savannah Construction and Preservation,  Bonitz Roofing and Page’s Painting LLC.
 
“Our firm is proud to be able to practice law in a structure with historic significance, and we are proud that we were able to complete the work necessary to uphold the Historic Savannah Foundation’s guidelines,” said firm partner Mark T. Shawe. “The firm looks forward to a long stay in its newly renovated building and remaining a fixture on Wright Square for many years to come.”