Area business owners have plans to rebuild the interior of a vacant downtown Warrenton building, with commercial space on the first floor and apartments on the second and third.

The three-story ,historical Nieburg Building at 201 E. Main St. is the former location of the well-known restaurant Yesterday’s. It has been vacant since 2011.

The Warrenton Board of Aldermen approved a conditional use permit (CUP) Nov. 21 for Lorie and Steve Miller to renovate the building and construct up to eight apartments in the upper floors. The Millers said they are in the process of purchasing the property and planned to close on it this week.

The Millers live in Wright City and own a small flooring store there, Lorie Miller wrote in a letter to the board of aldermen. They previously have done five similar, but smaller renovation projects in Lincoln County, she said.

“In the last 10 years, we have witnessed what appears to be a lack of growth in our downtown area. Some of our beautifully historic buildings seem to be neglected,” Lorie said. “Revitalizing the Nieburg Building would undeniably generate a new buzz in town, provide needed affordable safe housing and contribute financially to the area.”

The Millers met with the board of aldermen at its regular public meeting Nov. 21.

Ward 3 Alderman Gary Miller asked if there was any water damage or mold in the upper level of the building after the roof was damaged earlier this year. A storm in May tore part of the roof from the structure.

Steve Miller said he hadn’t observed any mold when they did a walkthrough of the building.

“I’m thinking once I get in the wall, I might find something behind the plaster we can’t see now,” he said. Steve added that some wooden flooring has been damaged by humidity.

Aldermen took the meeting opportunity to strongly recommend that the Millers have the building inspected for fire code compliance before closing on the property.

“I would suggest before you sign ... go have the fire inspector walk through the building and see if he throws any curve balls to you,” Ward 2 Alderman Gary Auch said. He added that two recent commercial developments have encountered unexpected problems with fire code.

To receive a conditional use permit to build apartments at the property, the Millers first had to appear before Warrenton’s Planning and Zoning Commission on Nov. 2. One of the conditions recommended by the P&Z commission was that no more than six apartments be allowed. The Millers had requested up to eight apartments.

Auch said the six apartment cap was due to concerns about available parking space. A site plan for the building shows 10 dedicated parking spaces in the rear for residents. Any additional vehicles, including commercial traffic, would have to be handled by street parking.

City Attorney Chris Graville advised limiting when tenants could use Main Street parking, in order to avoid a repeat of past conflicts with businesses.

“Business owners became very upset when people were regularly parking in spaces in front of their business, because that was their only regular parking space,” Graville said.

Aldermen felt parking on side streets and the parking lot would be adequate, however, and allowed for the full eight apartments without any parking restrictions. The conditional use permit was unanimously approved.

Even though the CUP allows for up to eight apartments, Building Commissioner Jack Hanff said each apartment would still have to meet city code requirements, including minimum square footage.

Steve Miller said they haven’t yet had an architect create drawings for the apartments, so it’s possible based on cost or space that there will be fewer than eight apartments anyway.

According to city records, the last business in operation at the building was Gibson Grille Downtown in 2010.

The building was originally constructed in 1912 by F.W. Nieburg and Co. It housed a furniture store and funeral chapel. The third floor was built as a residence and has been kept that way up to present day.

Wright City business owners Steve and Lorie Miller plan to renovate the historical Nieburg Building at 201 E. Main St. in Warrenton, with commercial space on the first floor and apartments on the second and third floors. Record photo.