THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT 
              Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: Sunday, April 7, 1996                  TAG: 9604050207
SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN              PAGE: 20   EDITION: FINAL 
TYPE: Business 
                                             LENGTH: Short :   43 lines

MALL AMONG CITY'S OLDEST BUILDINGS

Washington Square Mall, built in 1886, is among downtown Suffolk's oldest buildings.

The building has gone through a series of renovations, including remodeling in 1972 as an office-retail mall from its use as the Ballard and Smith Department Store since the early '30s.

It had been damaged by fire in the 1800s, before the department store acquired it.

When Andrew B. Damiani bought the 11,000 square foot building, the third floor was essentially condemned. And ``historical concerns not being what they are now,'' he had the floor razed - by hand. ``We couldn't take it out by bulldozer because it might endanger surrounding buildings, so I had it removed brick by brick.''

Other structural problems required Damiani to employ more creative methods. He discovered a creek running beneath the building and had to have the city deliver dozens of truckloads of earth to provide fill. Damiani covered the earth with concrete, and the building has been watertight ever since.

Parting with his 24-year-old business hasn't been easy for him, he admits. ``I guess, in the back of my mind, I wasn't ready to give it up, but Mark and I had talked for a year on and off about this, and I wanted to turn it over to someone younger, who could ensure the future of the building.''

Mark Grethen, 38, and Sandy, 34, proved to be perfect buyers, Damiani said.

``We're getting a little movement downtown now, and Mark is part of that renaissance and renewal,'' Damiani believes. ``Properties need to be moved and put into the hands of new entrepreneurs that have a new vision. . . . And we need those pioneers to come in and take us forward with their visions.''

Washington Square Mall is 92 percent occupied, with Total Eye Care, Suffolk Temporaries, Avon, ASAP, the Virginia Legal Aid Society, Ted Drake Insurance, Tidewater Information Group and Damiani Properties in residence. by CNB