The F&F Concrete Plant in Conway was the envy of the concrete industry when it opened 35 years ago. F&F president Felton O’Kelley wanted his plant to be a symbol of concrete’s greatness, so on a 5.5-acre spread in south Conway he built the plant’s five structures out of concrete products.
“I don’t think it’s very smart to put up a bunch of metal buildings and then go out and try to convince people that they ought to construct concrete buildings,” O’Kelley told a newspaper a couple of years after the plant opened.
The plant’s futuristic look, highlighted by the structures’ butterfly-style roofs, made it a Conway landmark.
After more than three decades of operation, most recently by Martin Marietta Materials of Raleigh, N.C., the facility’s once advanced technology is now long outdated — though its futuristic look isn’t. At least Conway developer George Covington Sr. doesn’t think so.
Two years ago Covington bought the space and turned three of the site’s five buildings into office, industrial and warehouse space and even a daycare center.
More recently, Covington is putting the finishing touches on a seven-month renovation of what is now Covington Towers, a mixed-use office and residential project.
The newest remodeling includes the four-story controller’s tower, which is being converted into a 2,500-SF apartment building, and the old plant’s sand and gravel bins, whose five compartments will each be turned into 1,450-SF apartments.
The three-story apartments will have ground floor space for offices as well.
Covington could not say how much the project cost, citing unconventional demolition methods that do not come with a standard price tag.
Putting windows in the old gravel bins, for example, required the removal of 36,000-pound concrete panels. And about 48,000 pounds of scrap metal was removed from the controller’s tower.
“If you’ve got to have an upfront cost and you know exactly what it’s going to cost, you’re probably not going to do it,” Covington said.
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