VOLUSIA, Fla -- DeLand's historic Putnam Hotel will be coming down in less than a week after the city issued a permit to demolish the structure a month after engineers recommended it because of the failing structural integrity of the century-old building.

Although the landmark may be coming down, nearby business owner Redon Kadriu, who says he benefited from the traffic it created, was sad to see it go.

“Could be good, could be bad," he said. "Loses the history of DeLand, really,” said Kadriu, who owns Tony's New York Pizza with his family.

Sitting along West New York Avenue, the empty Putnam Hotel is less than half a mile from the Kadriu's restaurant. He said that in its heyday, the hotel brought business to the area. Toward the end, though, not so much, he said.

Now, after a century in DeLand the story has come to an end for the Putnam.

“It’s been so long,” Kadriu said. “It has been up for such a while and it has gone through so many other hands, that why now? Why now have they chose to demolish it?”

This decision comes after the current owner Axia Putnam LLC was working to renovate the hotel into high-end apartments. According to the city, that’s when multiple structural deficiencies were discovered.

The city said in a press release that a December report from BBM Structural Engineers, Inc., revealed the east wing of the building had deteriorated rapidly and recommended demolishing the structure as a whole.

Kadriu said he is still shocked to know that the landmark building will be torn down.

“It is a landmark — everyone that comes through DeLand, they usually see it or they say it is haunted,” he said. “You hear the stories from the Stetson kids saying it is haunted and stuff like that.”

Mayor Chris Cloudman said in a press release that he would like to see a complimentary structure built in the hotel's place.

“The building has stood for many years in the heart of our downtown," he said. "And it is my hope that the property will be redeveloped in a manner that pays homage to the once prestigious hotel.”

Kadriu said he has one idea about what he would like to see in the future.

“Housing more than anything," he said. "I think would be more beneficial for DeLand."