Historic home damaged by arson to be revamped and revived

New owners are now working revamp and revive a historic St. Augustine home that was destroyed by a suspected arsonist.

Bruce Maguire, of Maguire Land Corp., hopes to breathe new life into the vacant home on Cordova Street.

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It sits on a coveted street with high foot traffic and in the heart of historic St. Augustine.

It’s a property Maguire has been eyeing for years.

“Location, location is everything. It’s hard to find properties now in the historic district,” said Maguire.

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He’s now the new owner after buying it from local architect Jerry Dixon.

“We’ve known Jerry Dixon for a long time and I’ve been trying to get him to sell that property ever since the fire and he finally relented,” said Maguire.

Action News Jax was there in 2014 when firefighters swarmed the home along with three others nearby after suspicious fires broke out.

It was ruled arson, but no one was ever arrested for the crime.

A gaping hole in the back shows how much damage was left behind.

The home, that was built in the late 1800s, now needs major TLC.

Soon the reminder of that devastating fire will be gone because Maguire intends to renovate the home.

Locals like Jeffrey Hawkins are excited.

“I think the fact that it’s being restored you know and a historical home. It’s terrific that’s why I love the area,” said Hawkins. “We love to see the property values go up that’s a good thing.”

STORY: House fires ruled arson in St. Augustine

Maguire says it won’t be a complete knockdown. Instead he plans to focus on restoring the back of the home which was the most damaged.

“Our plans are retail down stairs and rentable units upstairs,” said Maguire. “We’re looking at two one bedrooms.”

Work likely won’t begin until early next year following approval by the Historic Architectural Review Board of what Maguire calls a “minor change.”

Locals and students, who walk by the home every day, are looking forward to the possibilities.

“It’ll be interesting to see it renovated and kind of fall into place with the rest of the houses on this street,” said MC Bell.

Maguire said Dixon will stay on as the architect for the renovations and he’s in talks with the builder Dixon was going to hire for renovations.

“You won’t be able to tell really a whole lot of difference,” said Maguire.

Cox Media Group