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Preservation Durham introduced its inaugural Places in Peril list on March 31, 2010. The inaugural list of Places in Peril was chosen by public nomination and through activities of Preservation Durham in the community. To be considered, a property must be culturally or historically significant; actively endangered; and able to benefit from increased public awareness its perilous situation.
Preservation Durham has three goals for this new initiative.
- Raise community awareness about Durham's architectural and cultural history
- Galvanize the public to act to preserve historically and architecturally important properties
- Raise awareness about Preservation Durham and its activities
Places in Peril in 2010 range from neglected inner city historic business districts to rural cultural icons to under-appreciated pieces of the fabric of Durham's historic neighborhoods. Preservation Durham is seeking the assistance of the media to help raise awareness of the threat to these properties and their ongoing effort to focus on the long-term preservation of Places in Peril. The program is also designed to remind the community that Preservation Durham is an organization to which they can come for information and help in preserving threatened parts of Durham's heritage.
We look forward to working with the community to preserve the indispensable elements of Durham's heritage on the 2010 list of Places in Peril. In the years ahead, this program will help the Durham community celebrate preservation accomplishments and inspire us all to continue this vital work in the future.
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| 2010 PLACES IN PERIL |
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LITTLE FIVE POINTS
Intersection of North Mangum, Corporation, and
Cleveland Streets
This small commercial district suffered decline after post-War suburbanization and the conversion of N. Mangum to a one-way street. Some of
the buildings are in serious disrepair, most notably the 1870s structure at the southwest corner of Mangum
and Corporation, possibly the oldest commercial structure in Durham. Redevelopment threatens the pedestrian scale and massing of
this commercial corridor, one of the major gateways to downtown.
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What's Needed: Education about the historic value of the buildings and their
collective importance as a neighborhood commercial district.
Grant-seeking for state and federal
Rehabilitation Tax Credits and Matching Façade Grants, Commercial Revitalization Loans, and other local incentives.
Business tenants who will create positive activity and a critical mass along the pedestrian path, fostering a vibrant walkable urban neighborhood.
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LOWE'S GROVE SCHOOL
4505 South Alston Avenue at NC 54
Begun as a Farm Life School in 1891, the school moved in the 1920s to the current building, the first rural brick school building in the county. It has been empty since the school moved to a new building across Alson Ave. in 1989. The South Regional Library is currently under construction on the site. The land is valuable and the location central, making it challenging to maintain the rural context and accomplish development that respects and compliments the one remaining historic structure. |
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What's Needed: Thorough documentation and listing on the National register of Historic Places.
Adaptive reuse while retaining the rural context.
Durham County must make the preservation, sale, and rehabilitation of this school a priority, aggressively marketing the property to developers who understand the financial and cultural benefits of historic preservation.
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EAST DURHAM COMMERCIAL DISTRICT
1200 Block of Angier Avenue at Alson Avenue
This small commercial center once served bordering residential areas. Remaining commercial properties on the north side of the street, including the Pope Mattress Company, are in very poor condition, yet still reflect the scale and detail of the now-destroyed buildings on the northwest and southwest corners of the intersection. The impressive architecture of the Asbury Temple United Methodist Church, erected around 1925, anchors the southeast corner of the intersection and remains in use. The proposed widening of Alston Avenue threatens to negatively impact the pedestrian scale and walkability of this block. |
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What's Needed: Rehabilitation of the East Durham Commercial District and the celebration of this block as a
gateway to historic East Durham.
Preservation of the existing buildings using Matching Façade Grants, Merchandise-Based Retain Incentives, and other incentives for rehabilitation.and new construction that is in keeping with the massing, scale, and rhythm of the streetscape.
Reintroducation of positive pedestrian activity to this block, supporting a walkable viable community,
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McPHERSON HOSPITAL
1108 West Main Street
Founded in 1914, the McPherson Hospital constructed this building on West Main Street in 1926. Named for Dr. Samuel Dace McPherson, the 24-bed hospital was a pioneer in eye, ear, nose and throat care here before moving in 2005 to a new building on N. Roxboro Road. This building is currently owned
by Concord Hospitality Enterprises Corporation, who plan to expand and convert the building for hotel use pending additional funding.
In 2008, 1940s and 1960s additions to the hospital were removed, leaving the historic 1926 portion of the building exposed to the elements. |
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What's Needed: Immediate protection for the exposed portions of the building to prevent further
decay.
Full restoration and use that would create positive activity along the street and provide a sustainable
income for the building.
Additions to the structure that will compliment the existing design features and be compatible in
scale and detail to both the McPherson Hospital and the rest of the neighborhood.
Use of state and federal Rehabilitation Tax Credits for which the building qualifies as a contributing structure to the Trinity National Register Historic District.
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JACKSON STREET HOMES
804 and 806 Jackson Street
These two houses, part of the Morehead Hill Historic District, were likely constructed by a single builder between 1913 and 1925. Healthy Start Education, Inc. acquired the houses in 2004 and applied to the Historic Preservation Commission for a permit to demolish them in 2008. The Commission delayed the demolition for one year and neighborhood residents and concerned citizens rallied for the preservation of the homes. The one-year delay has expired and the future of these houses is uncertain. Removal of the houses, either by demolition or by relocation, would result in a loss of important historic resources in the Morehead Hill Historic
District.
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What's Needed: Preservation of the Jackson Street Houses in their existing locations and their restoration as single-family homes if possible.
Removal of the homes to another neighborhood, carefully placing them in a historic area that not only is compatible in scale and architectural style, but also replicates the original siting of the houses and their relationship to the street and surrounding structures.
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HILLSIDE HIGH SCHOOL-
WHITTED JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL
200 East Umstead Street
The Hillside Park High School was constructed in 1922 as the first African American high school in Durham. Around 1950, it became the Whitted Junior High School. The school was expanded several times and remained in operation as a junior high into the 1970s. It was last used as Operation Breakthrough in the 1980s. After Today the school is in desperate need of repair and, with most of its windows broken, is exposed to the elements.
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What's Needed: Thorough documentation and listing on the National Register of Historic Places, which would make it eligible for state and federal Rehabilitation Tax Credits. The school may also
be eligible for Local Landmark Status.
Adaptive reuse. The building is ideally located near North Carolina Central University, Downtown Durham, and the American Tobacco Historic District and is also easily accessible to the Durham Freeway.
Durham County must make the preservation, sale, and rehabilitation of this school a priority, aggressively marketing the property to developers who understand the financial and cultural benefi ts of historic preservation and providing resources and incentives to encourage the successful redevelopment of this building.
MORE ABOUT THE 2010 PLACES IN PERIL
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