Information courtesy of The Preservation Society of Asheville and Buncombe County —
Each year in May, during National Preservation Month, the Preservation Society of Asheville and Buncombe County holds an awards ceremony to recognize significant local preservation projects and to honor the efforts of property owners, contractors and architects across the community.
Below are the winners of the 2017 Griffin Awards for Historic Preservation.
In the Adaptive Reuse category, which recognizes efforts to sensitively alter historic places to allow for a new use, this year’s winners are:
- The Patton Parker House at 95 Charlotte St.
- Buxton Hall Barbecue
- The new 12 Bones in the River Arts District
- The Swannanoa Valley Museum
Winners in the Rehabilitation category, which includes the preservation practices of lightly modifying a historic house in a manner that respects integrity of age while allowing for modern-day conveniences, include:
- 51 Starnes Ave. in Montford
- 14 Club St. in Chicken Hill
- 178 Sunset Drive in Black Mountain
- 51 Lawrence Place of Grove Park
In Restoration, a seldom-used practice of accurately restoring a historic place to a certain period of time, the winners include:
- The Vance Monument
- The Montreat Gateway
In Stewardship, the job of supervising or taking care of something, such as an organization or property:
- Buncombe County Government was recognized for the long-term care and maintenance of the Smith & Carrier Office building, currently housing the Register of Deeds Office. This building, built in 1923, stands in the shadow of both the new courts building and a modern office building at the College Street roundabout.
In Education, the winners are:
- The North Carolina Room of Pack Library, for its highly regarded program series highlighting downtown Asheville in the 1980s.
- Sandy Mush community’s work to create the Farm Heritage Trail.
Lastly, the preservation society honored the Albemarle Park Manor-Grounds Neighborhood Association for its work replicating historic street lighting, restoring a brick-lined walkway known as Hillside Walk, creation of a new neighborhood website and restoration of two stone-gateway pillars demarking the historic district.
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