Pickerington-Violet Township Historical Society
Pickerington-Violet Township Historical Society
Pickerington-Violet Township Historical Society
Pickerington-Violet Township Historical Society
Since 1946, an unmistakably round building has anchored the corner of Columbus and Center Street. The building has lived many lives, but for years, it remained vacant.
This spring, 4 E. Columbus St. comes back to life with the introduction of Local Cantina to Olde Town Village. Local Cantina’s residency is sure to bring a breath of life into the historic building, but before it was home to tacos and tequila, it had a decorated past.
Before the current building was established in 1946, two different buildings occupied the space.
In the late 1800s, it was a large two-story saloon. However, in the early 1900s, it was transformed into Roy Huntwork’s Sinclair Station, which was the first gas station in Pickerington. In 1946, it transformed into a Standard Oil station, “Dude” Harrell’s Sohio Service Station.
Thirty-six years later in 1982, Dude’s closed, and the lot was bought by Violet Township, which used it as the Fire Department administrative offices for a few years. The Township then leased the building to the Fairfield County Sheriff’s Department, and it was used as a substation. After the substation moved to 12941 Stonecreek Dr. in September of 2022, the building sat vacant for just under a year.
In April of 2023, Violet Township sold the building to the City, and in June of 2025, the City of Pickerington teamed up with Local Cantina to restore the building.
“We’ve been wanting to open a restaurant in Pickerington for years,” Local Cantina Director of Operations Frankie Heath says. “We as a company love making old things new.”
In fact, much of the fixtures in Local Cantina’s restaurants are thrifted from local neighborhoods or upcycled from restaurants that closed. But restoring the building itself came with its own set of challenges.
Although its current appearance gives no hint of the difficulties involved, the rehabilitation was anything but easy. Black mold crept up from the basement stairwell, and the building’s glazed brick construction required walls to be opened – just a few of the many obstacles overcome along the way.
“I think that today, we are too quick to tear down historic buildings and places and put up (something) new,” Heath says. “It has been a serious learning experience… but it has been fun.”
Megan Brokamp is an editor at CityScene Media Group. Feedback welcome at mbrokamp@cityscenemediagroup.com.
