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CBC Wins Award for Downtown Durham Historic Preservation
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CBC transformed the abandoned American Tobacco Campus into a living, breathing entity in downtown Durham. |
Capitol Broadcasting Company’s massive undertaking with the restoration and renovation of the American Tobacco Campus in downtown Durham is once again garnering accolades. Preservation North Carolina has awarded CBC for “its exceptional rehabilitation of the American Tobacco Historic District.”
Preservation North Carolina presented its 2005 L. Vincent Lowe, Jr. award to CBC at the organization’s annual conference. The awards reception took place at Belmont Abbey College in Belmont on Friday evening, October 28, 2005. CBC Vice President & General Counsel Mike Hill accepted the award on CBC’s behalf.
Preservation NC presented its highest business award to CBC. |
“It takes both vision and courage to tackle an urban redevelopment site of over 15 acres, close to one million square feet of vacant space, in historic industrial buildings that date to the 1870s,” announced Preservation NC. “By using preservation as an economic development tool, Capitol Broadcasting Company has recast these buildings as a vital component of the physical and economic fabric of the city.”
The American Tobacco Historic District is listed on the National Register as a whole. The campus also includes one National Historic Landmark,
W.T. Blackwell’s Genuine “Bull” Durham Tobacco Factory. “This complex represents the heart-and-soul of an industry that put Durham on the map.”
The Fowler Building is now a welcoming site. |
The L. Vincent Lowe, Jr. Business Award is “the highest honor presented to a North Carolina business showing vision and creativity in promoting the protection of the states architectural resources.” Originally established in 1983 as the North Carolina Business Award, the honor was renamed for Vince Lowe of Wilson after his untimely death in 1989. At the time of his death, Lowe was chairing Preservation NC’s 50th Anniversary Campaign. He was an fervent supporter of historic causes in the state.
More about the Award from Preservation NC:
Capitol Broadcasting Company of Raleigh, headed by Jim Goodmon, spent three years of careful research and planning, and building partnerships with government and industry, before exercising an option on the property. Empty for almost two decades, this massive complex sat vacant and moldering. It contributed to an image of downtown Durham as an abandoned industrial core. The $200 million project is expected, upon completion, to house 3,600 jobs, many of which moved to Durham from elsewhere, and hundreds of residents. |
Thanks to WRAL-TV’s Ben Casey for these capcom photos of the ATHD.
