Local leaders celebrate Leesburg depot renovations

LEESBURG — U.S. Congressman Sanford Bishop joined state and local leaders in front of Leesburg’s historic train depot Thursday to formally announce and celebrate the fact that the station will soon be getting a much-needed facelift thanks to federal support.

The Leesburg City Council took a huge step forward in a process that has been ongoing since the early 1990s, when it entered into a contract recently with the Georgia Department of Transportation to receive $226,620 in federal transportation funds that will be used to completely restore the outside of the depot. Thursday’s ceremony served to officially kick off those efforts in front of the community.

Community matriarch and former Lee County Primary School Principal Opal Cannon, who has been a champion of the depot renovation efforts, got things started Thursday by telling the audience why she believes restoration of the depot is important.

“Do you realize that every car and truck that comes south or north on (Highway) 19, this is what they see of our county?” Cannon said. “This may be how they judge us. Well, they’re going to get fooled. They’re going to find out that we are very positive people.”

Cannon shared a bit about the history of the depot, which was built by the Central of Georgia railroad in 1895, and about her involvement in plans to rehabilitate the National Historic Registered structure, something she’s been a part of for more than 15 years.

“It’s a wonderful opportunity that I have, had and the reason I am on this committee, and chair it, is because we had a mayor many years ago named Bob Boney, and when Bob, he was like a bulldog, and when he got something on his mind, he didn’t stop until he got it done,” said Cannon. “Mr. Boney called me one day and asked if I would commit to this. I had just retired and I thought, ‘This is not what I was planning to do.’ But I took it. And I’ve learned so much.

“When Mr. Boney was on his deathbed and he called for me to come and see him, he made me promise that I wouldn’t give up until it was finished. That’s why I’m here today.”

In addition to talking about her involvement, Cannon also praised others who have been instrumental in seeing the project approach fruition, including local leaders City Manager Bob Alexander, Leesburg Mayor Jim Quinn, past and current city council members, county commissioners, DOT officials, state Rep. Ed Rynders, state Sen. Greg Kirk, and Bishop, who Cannon calls “a great friend.”

“We have a lot of people who have come from great distances to help us,” she said.

Rynders, R-Leesburg, was the first speaker after Cannon’s welcome, and he said the depot renovations represented something vital for many in the county.

“People have hopes and dreams and plans, and as people, we must have those,” said Rynders. “Why? Because it makes us better. People are the heart of the community, and it’s a heart that can’t be broken. A community must always have hopes and plans. Today is the beginning of this project for our community. It represents 20 years of hopes and dreams and plans.”

Kirk followed Rynders, saying that although he played only a minor role in helping the depot project reach this point, he was committed as a state leader to seeing that the people of Leesburg got the support they deserve.

“I will continue to do anything I can,” he said.

The final speaker of the day was Bishop, who thanked those assembled for their efforts and shared his thoughts on why the renovation project is important.

“I am so glad to be here today, and I want to thank everyone that is here joining us for this historic occasion,” said Bishop. “This is a project that we’ve been waiting for a long time. It’s a project that means so much to Leesburg, Georgia.

“I believe that in order to know who we are today, we must remember from whence we have come. As you can see, the building is in need of a new roof, sides, plumbing and wiring in order to bring it back to its former glory. Thankfully, the Leesburg City Council recently unanimously approved an agreement with the Georgia Department of Transportation to renovate the exterior of this historic Leesburg train depot.”

Bishop told how a visit by Kenneth Cutts to Lee County ultimately led to the procurement of the federal funding.

“I can’t say enough about the folks that made this project a reality,” said Bishop. “Just a few years ago, in 2003, our district director, Kenneth Cutts, in his usual visits to Lee County, he stopped over at the newspaper and he had a conversation with Mr. Daryl Quinn, then-councilman Jim Quinn, Opal Cannon and late Mayor Bob Boney. They pointed over here to this building and said, ‘We need to restore it, and we need some help.’

“Kenneth Cutts came back, he has to do a report every Thursday, and we read his activity report. When the people want some help, it’s our obligation to do our dead-level best to see if we can make it happen.”

Bishop explained that he and his staff were eventually able to get an earmark for federal funding and that after a few unexpected issues, including the economic recession in 2008, things had finally come to fruition.

“The project will be completed in two phases,” said Bishop. “Eventually it will be brought back to its original glory. (The depot will be) suitable to be a true welcome center for the city of Leesburg and certainly as a museum to house the artifacts and the other historic documents and materials that will remind us of the beautiful, storied history of the city of Leesburg, Georgia.”

Work on the building’s exterior is expected to begin within the next few weeks with Fourth Street Design and Construction handling the project.