THE corner of Albury's Beehive building is changing colour and having the finials which crown its facade replaced for the first time since it opened in 1889.
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Owner Elizabeth Pike has spent thousands on the upgrade which has seen the site on the corner of Dean and Townsend streets change hue from white to a Dulux paint known as Harold Holt.
![Busy as a Beehive: The historic retail building on the corner of Dean and Townsend streets is changing colour and having its finials replaced. Picture: ELENOR TEDENBORG Busy as a Beehive: The historic retail building on the corner of Dean and Townsend streets is changing colour and having its finials replaced. Picture: ELENOR TEDENBORG](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/XJLgPnEdnKaFugZzKyL6Sw/8efc2146-f39d-4e69-97a4-331f736c6340.jpg/r0_161_5184_3087_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Her husband Rod Pike said it was the biggest revamp in the 18 years his wife has owned the corner section of the premises which extend east on Dean Street.
"I just think Dean Street is a magnificent landscape and we owe it to Albury to have the building up to date as much as we can, so it's not looking drab and neglected," Mr Pike said.
He said the facade makeover followed work on the internal first floor structure over the past two years.
Albury firm Modem Constructions has undertaken the project under foreman Neil Sawyer.
The paint colour is the same shade used on the Bond's clothing store also in Dean Street.
That building was previously occupied by the Commonwealth Bank and a shoe warehouse.
Concrete Creations owner Ray Williams was subcontracted to replace the spherical finials which top the Beehive building.
He used a mould to create new versions, which differ from the originals by being solid rather than hollow with a metal rod through them.
Mrs Pike bought the building in 1997 from the Moy family which had operated a shoe shop there since 1962.
Mr Pike operated his pharmacy there until 2008 when it became Fifield's chemist.