Noel recognized for preserving Old Post Office

Old Post Office owner John Noel isn’t just preserving history — he’s making it.

The City of Bainbridge honored Noel at last Tuesday’s city council meeting after he received the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation’s Excellence in Rehabilitation award, which recognizes projects that make buildings usable while preserving their historic features.

“The Bainbridge City Council commends the rehabilitation of the Old Post Office and celebrates the honor it has received from the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation,” Mayor Sylvia Washington said.

What’s now the Old Post Office has stood across from Willis Park since 1914, according to the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation. It served as Bainbridge’s post office — hence the name — a federal courthouse and later the Decatur County Board of Education’s offices before becoming vacant in 2022.

Originally from Atlanta, Noel took on a roughly year-and-a-half renovation project to transform the building into an event space and speakeasy-style bar.

“This is the big crown jewel,” Noel previously told The Post-Searchlight. “I saw the front of this building, and I said, ‘That is a keeper.’”

Noel thanked the councilmembers and city staff, including former Downtown Development Authority Executive Director Amanda Glover and Director of Community & Economic Development Steve O’Neil.

“The city made it so easy for a new businessperson coming to town to put money in and fix things up, and I appreciate that,” Noel said. “I think it’s one of the great attractants to Bainbridge for other people.”