Courtesy photo
Hays Post
Stacy and Jarrod Jones are leaving their respective practices to start a new practice, EyeSmile Vision and Dental at 1300 Main.
The building, which is in the Chestnut Street Historic District, was built in 1932 and for many years was used as a service station. The station was known as Nep’s Super Service and then Jep’s. The Joneses are remodeling it back to its 1950s footprint.
The building was constructed by the father of the two brothers who ran the service station. The father also built Thomas More Prep-Marian school and the Lamar Hotel.
“When we were deciding we wanted to go together, we were looking for different potential locations,” Stacey Jones said. “Driving around town, we looked at two or three other locations and came across that one and just kept going back to it, thinking it was really going to be a fun place. We liked the idea of being downtown. It had good parking options, which we really like. We just a had a vision for how it could be separated into two different spaces fairly easily.”
Renovating a building in a historic district had its challenges. The Joneses were all set to begin construction in May, when work on the project was halted by the state. Preservationists insisted the footprint of the building more closely follow the 1950s building.
The Joneses had to go back to plans on file with the Hays Fire Department from the 1940s. They scrapped their plans and started over. This pushed the construction start back to August.
“The interesting thing about the building was allowing it to reveal itself to us,” Stacey Jones said. “That has been a really fun adventure for us.”
The Joneses were also required to keep the exterior looking like a filling station, which Stacey Jones said she thinks it does. There is history inside the building as well. You will see a terrazzo floor, brick walls, a plaster ceiling and a fireplace that were original to the building.
Both the Joneses said they look forward to relocating downtown.
“It feels like a sense of community we’ve noticed,” Stacey Jones said. “We both grew up in small towns and had that sense of community, and downtown certainly gives us that feel of small town community with the businesses and the activities that happen on Main Street with the parades and the art walks and the functions that have happened. The Downtown (Hays) Development Corp. has really been supportive as well.”
The building will have more than 6,000 square feet of usable space once the renovation is complete.
The original garage bay will be the guest lounge, and the service desk area will be the reception area in the clinic. The front-office staff will be shared. On the optometry side, there will be two exam rooms, and there will be eight exam rooms on the dental side.
Jarrod Jones, a Hays dentist for 15 years, is now located in Cedar Lodge on Vine Street and was a partner with his brother Dr. Paul Jones. Jarrod Jones is a graduate of the University of Texas-Houston. He practices general dentistry and does everything from filings to implants.
Jarrod Jones started to operate as EyeSmile on Oct. 1. His brother and Dr. Ross Kee will remain at Cedar Lodge when Jarrod Jones starts seeing patients at the new location on Jan. 7. He will see his last patients at Cedar Lodge on Dec. 20 to facilitate the move to the new building.
Stacey Jones also graduated from the University of Texas-Houston and has been an optometrist for 15 years. She is an associate of Dr. Kendall Krug, 2203 Canterbury. She will be leaving that practice to partner with her husband on Dec. 31. Stacey Jones works with general eye health for people of all ages. She hopes the optical side of the building will be ready for her by the end of January.
Dr. Krug will continue to see patients as a solo practitioner after Jones’ departure.
The Joneses have considered combining their practices since they were newlyweds.
“It was something that was always in the back of our minds as a possibility and a good melding of having the two practices together under one roof,” Stacey Jones said.
The Joneses said they think their patients will benefit from having both services under one roof.
Some patients might be able to book a dental cleaning and an eye exam on the same day. However, this will depend on the doctors’ schedules. One member of a family might be able to have their glasses adjusted while they wait on another family member who is having an eye exam or dental exam.
Stacey Jones will have an eyewear boutique at the practice. She is bring in frames from Spain, New York, L.A., Chicago, Seattle and Kansas City that can’t be ordered online.
You can learn more about the practice on Facebook. You can make appointments at 785-621-4242. A new website for the practices will available soon. Both practitioners will be accepting new patients.