Purple Poppy Shoppe Owner Hopes 'Nightmare' Is Over Soon

It all started with a terrible smell that had passers-by holding their breath as they walked next to the pretty shop on Jones Street in downtown Norcross.

The ordeal that began more than five weeks ago has turned into a nightmare for the Purple Poppy Shoppe's owner, Patricia Preece - and one that seems to have no end.

"There were broken sewage pipes from Zapata next door that ran under our store," explained Preece. She said she began to notice a foul odor which got progressively worse until you could "smell it from out at the curb."

The city of Norcross was called and issued a warning to the building's owner, J.P. Harrrington, who then called Peachtree Emergency Water Removal to make repairs to the broken sewer lines.

It required removing a portion of the original floors of the building that dates back to the early 1900s. "They just chopped up the floor and threw it away," said Preece, who is dismayed that there was no effort to remove the floors so that they could be re-installed afterwards.

The company brought in heaters, fans and other equipment which ran for two weeks to eliminate the moisture and foul smell that penetrated her 1,800 square-foot shop. The merchandise in the store was covered in sheets of plastic while the work was being done, she said.

The cracked sewage line has been repaired, said Preece, but now there's work needed on the floor joists before the new floor can be installed. The building's owner said he was getting bids for the work.

"No one admits it's their problem," said Preece. "It's been a 24/7 nightmare. Usually you only have nightmares while you're asleep." This one seems never-ending, she added.

In the meantime Preece, and her one part-time employee, have been out of work with no income coming in.

"The city is trying to help," said Chris McCrary, the community development director for Norcross. "We can only do so much as the building is privately owned."

Preece said in the interim she's opened up an annex at The Shops of Antique Traditions, located a few doors down which she intends to maintain after the Purple Poppy reopens.

As an interior decorator by trade for the past 43 years, Preece has been operating the shop which sells speciality furniture pieces, lamps, jewelry and other home decorations for the past three years.

Despite the ordeal, she is optimistic that it will soon be over. "I'm hopeful that within the next few weeks we'll hear some good news," she said.

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