Historic Preservation

The Community Partnership Center, as part of its commitment to sustainable development in Tennessee, is active in promoting historic preservation in the region. UT students, working with the CPC, have played a major role in helping preserve the region’s architectural and historic resources.

In 2004, the CPC co-hosted the first annual Regional Historic Preservation Congress. This event, held at historic Maryville College, drew participants from across East Tennessee, including preservation advocates, developers, and municipal and elected officials. Featured speakers included Nancy Tinker, from the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the Hon. Victor Ashe, U.S. Ambassador to Poland.

Assisting in the conference were students from UT’s Urban Studies program. Students designed and conducted an architectural walking tour of Maryville’s historic College Hill neighborhood for conference participants. Students also developed and published an architectural guide to the neighborhood, which was distributed to participants and subsequently given to the local neighborhood association.

UT students are also working with the CPC and local grassroots organizations to preserve important structures in the region. Recently, for example, students from the university’s Urban and Regional Planning Program wrote a National Register nomination for the Historic Airplane Filling Station in Powell, Tennessee. The nomination, originally a class assignment, resulted in the structure being listed on the National Register. A planning student is currently developing an adaptive re-use plan for the structure as part of her master’s thesis. Another student, from the Urban Studies program, recently developed a web site devoted to preserving and restoring the site.