You’ve heard the saying…
The devil is in the detail.
A few short blocks down the hill from my old house is the historic district of our small town. It’s full of architectural detail!
Unfortunately, there’s also a whole lot of
What the devil happened… and why?
Our once-bustling downtown, graced with stately old buildings, was pushed aside by false illusions of progress. Back in the 1950s, a new four-lane highway was added on the south side of town—and one by one, downtown businesses were drawn away. Don’t blame me! I didn’t live here when the downhill spiral began…
It’s really quite a painful sight…
It is in dialogue with pain that many beautiful things acquire their value. Acquaintance with grief turns out to be one of the more unusual prerequisites of architectural appreciation. We might, quite aside from all other requirements, need to be a little sad before buildings can properly touch us.
Alain de Botton, The Architecture of Happiness
Fortunately, over the past few years, these old buildings have finally begun to touch a few people—and move them to action. A master plan was created for the old downtown. I’ll admit… I watched from afar while I let Life keep me occupied elsewhere.
In January 2013, when Renaissance Man moved the Hope Unlimited for Children headquarters office into the old historic district, I took one tiny step toward caring. If he was willing to do his part…
Last year I took a larger step when I agreed to join the historic district board—and chair the design committee. Do you see where this is going?
I’ve gotten to join up with some hard-working men and women as we step into a new day in old Mossy Creek. Working together, just look what we’ve achieved in the past year…
- Historic Zoning Commission created
- Design Guidelines written
- Historic district overlay adopted
- $25,000 facade grant received
- Feature property sold to new owner with plans to renovate
This week—on Wednesday afternoon—the facade grant selection committee will review applications from property owners… and start awarding the first grants to fund some long-overdue facelifts.
Finally… We’re catching glimpses of hope—and they look really good!
I’m thinking Someday… we’ll kick the devil to the curb and admire the details. 🙂
What do you think?
If you like old buildings… Have you been following The Pioneer Woman’s downtown building rescue in Oklahoma? Amazing! She discovered a 45-degree angle corner like ours in the last picture—but with the original marble column still in tact.
I’m so glad you stopped by today. Thank you for that! I always love your visits—and this chance to wish you a blessed and wonderful week ahead.
I’m joining Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch.
Now this is exciting! And of course, we here on the prairie adore our neighbor, The Pioneer Woman! Thanks for taking us along on your new journey. Cherry Kay
I’m so glad you’re stepping up to save the neighborhood. It’s well worth it, because the structures have good architectural “bones.” To give a sense of cohesiveness to the district, you might consider creating a recommended palette of paint colors, This color palette helps create the personality of the town and is part of what makes cities such as Charleston and Savannah so charming. .
Great accomplishments, what a worthwhile project to work on.