Minvilla Manor: National Preservation Award Winner
By National Trust for Historic Preservation on January 26th, 2012Nominations are now open for the 2012 Richard H. Driehaus National Preservation Awards. We’ll be highlighting a few of our favorites from last year here on the blog to give you a sense of what’s won in the past, and hope to see some of your projects here when the winners are announced at the 2012 National Preservation Conference in Spokane, Washington, on November 2!
Minvilla Manor – Knoxville, Tennessee
2011 National Trust/HUD Award
In the early 20th century, Fifth and Broadway was just a streetcar ride away from the bustling heart of Knoxville’s commercial center, and the 13 Minvilla townhomes were the height of sophisticated living for the city’s growing middle class. By the 1960s, however, the townhomes had been converted into the Fifth Avenue Motel, a magnet for crime.
In 2006, just four years after the building was condemned by the City of Knoxville, a private social services agency purchased the old Minvilla development and made it the flagship project of the city’s pioneering Ten-Year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness. Using a complex mix of public and private funds, the agency enlisted the help of local craftspeople to meticulously repair and reconstruct the building’s historic features. The notorious motel was reborn as Minvilla Manor: 57 studio and one-bedroom units of permanent supportive housing for the formerly homeless - all of which meet ENERGY STAR standards. The restoration is part of a larger revitalization in the area, and it has set an example for new commercial and residential development in the surrounding area.
Each year the National Trust for Historic Preservation celebrates the best of preservation by presenting the Richard H. Driehaus National Preservation Awards to individuals and organizations whose contributions demonstrate excellence in historic preservation. We invite you to nominate a deserving individual, organization, agency, or project for a Richard H. Driehaus National Preservation Award. The nomination deadline for all awards is March 15, 2012.
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