50downtown.pdf

Downtown

Revitalization

and

Historic

Preservation

in

Small

Town

America:

A

Case

Study

of

Tarboro,

North

Carolina

E.

Watson Brown

Wes

Hankins

Tarboro,

a

small

town

_{of 11,000}

in eastern

North

Carolina,

was

incorporated

in

1760

and

possesses

a

rich

heritage.

In recent

years,

however,

Tarboro

has

stniggled to

overcome economic

decline

and

create

new

opportunities

for

growth

and

development.

This

article

describes

Tarboro's

efforts,

focusing

on

the town's

creative

_{combination of}

downtown

revitalization

and

historic

preservation with

economic

development.

Tarboro's

economic

declinereached

new

heightsinthe 1960sandearly 1970s.

New

industriesstoppedlocatingin

the town; stores closed

on

Main

Street; older neighbor-hoods

became

lessfashionable

and

showed

obvioussignsof

decay.

The

veryfabricofthe

town was weakening

as the

young

moved

away,leaving

Tarboro

fortheopportunities oflargercities.

The

year 1974

was

aturningpoint. In that year,

Tarboro

wasnotifiedbythe U.S.

Department

of

Housingand

Urban

Development

(HUD)

ofitsparticipationinthe

new

Com-munity

Development

Block

Grant

(CDBG)

program.

The

town

thenhired a

town

planner to

work

with

community

leaders

and

citizengroupstoformulateplansforthe

rede-velopment

ofTarboro.

A

setof action plans

was

draftedtochannel funds toward

numerous

projects.

These

plansfocused

on

the rehabilita-tionofolderneighborhoods surrounding

downtown

Tar-boro

and

the revitalization of the

downtown

itself.

The

philosophywassimple: the renaissance of

downtown

neigh-borhoods

would

help spur the rebirth ofthe

downtown

commercial area. This process recognized the need for

more

information,

and

thefollowing studies

were

commis-sioned:

•

Land

use plans

and

_{specificaction plans}

were

developed

and implemented

withthe assistanceofundergraduate

classes

and

interns

from

the

Urban

and

Regional Plan-ning

Program

atEast CarolinaUniversity.

• Tarboro_{HistoricDistrict Study,}developed with_the

assis-tanceofagraduateclass

from

the

Department

ofCity

and Regional Planning at

UNC-Chapel

Hill,

recom-mended

policies

and

regulationsforanhistoric

neigh-borhood on two

sidesof

downtown.

Tarboro, North Carolina:

A

Design

Development

Plan,

developed byagraduateclass

from

theSchool ofDesign

atN.C.State University,included urban design

guide-lines

and

specificrenovation proposalsforthehistoric

commercial

core.

•

Commercial Market

Analysis: Tarboro,North_Carolina, conducted byZuchelli, Hunter,

and

Associates of

An-napolis,Maryland,studiedTarboro's

economy

andhelped the

town

in

making economic development

decisions.

These

studies

and

reports stressed that

Tarboro

should:

•

Focus

_efforts

on

preserving the town's

numerous

his-toricsites

and

districts.

Improve

marketing efforts to increase awareness of Tarboro'shistory

and unique

resources.

• _Capitalize

on

_{thetown's central location}surrounded by

larger cities. Tarboro's size

and

location had

been

viewedas a negative factor,

due

to out-migration of

retail dollars,but it could

become

a positiveelement,

with

Tarboro

servingasa special

hub

inthe region.

•

Seek

_{to attractsmall, specialty stores}ratherthanlarge, regional,ornationalretailchains.

• Target

economic development

_efforts not only

on

in-dustrial recruitment, but also

on

residential develop-ment.

Due

to its central location near larger cities,

Tarboro

could

become

a

bedroom

community.

E. Watson Brown, hired in

1974

as Tarboro'sfirst town

planner, served in that position until 1985.

He

receiveda

master's degree inplanning

_from

the University of North Carolina at

Chapel

Hill in 1974.

He

is currently senior

plannerin chargeof comprehensive planningforthecityof

Raleigh.

Wes

Hankins

isassociate professorofplanningatEast

Caro-lina University.

He

receiveda master's degree inplanning

from

Florida State University.

He

isco-editor of'The

Guide

View

additionalresidential

development

in

and around

downtown

asakeyto stabilizingthe

commercial

core.

Funding

With

these plans

and

specialstudiescompleted,the

town

beganthe taskoffinding

money

to

implement

the

recom-mended

projects.

Over

aten-year period,

Tarboro was

able togenerate over

$30

millionfortherevitalizationof

down-town neighborhoods and

the

commercial

core.

Funding

sourcesincludedprivatecitizens, localbusinesses

and

in-dustries, local

and

nationalfoundations,

and

state

and

fed-eralagenciessuchas

HUD,

the U.S.

Department

ofthe In-terior,the

Bureau

of

Outdoor

Recreation,theN.C.

Hous-ingFinance Agency,

and

theN.C.

Department

ofNatural Resources

and

Community

Development.

Neighborhood

Preservation

The

Tarboro

Historic District

was

established in 1976.

Thisoverlayzoningdistrictregulates allexteriorproperty

alterations in a45-block area

on two

sides of

downtown.

The

designation ofa historicdistrict accomplished

many

things: itincreased publicawarenessofTarboro'shistory;

il provided a distinct

neighborhood image and

pride; it

helpedtostabilize

and

even increasepropertyvalues;

and

itestablished adefinablearea forboth public

and

private rehabilitationinvestments

and

publicimprovements. Since the creation of the district in 1976, the following have

occurred:

• Rehabilitation

and

_Restoration.

Numerous

architectur-allysignificant

homes

were

restoredprivately,

and

over

fortyrenovations

were performed

throughpublic incen-tive

programs

offering low-interest loans

and

grants.

The

availabilityofgrantstolow-

and moderate-income

residentspreserved the

neighborhood

income

mix

and

forestalled thegentrificationthat has

occurred in other historic districts.

Historic rehabilitationsextendedinto adjacent minority neighborhoods, whereseveralhousessignificanttolocal

black history

were

restored.

• _{PublicImprovements. Public}

improve-ments, including resurfaced streets,

improved

drainage systems,

and

bet-tersidewalks,

were

made

without

dis-turbingtreesandothersignificant

neigh-borhood

features.

New

sidewalkswere

tinted to blend with olderwalkways, and two streets

were

redesigned so

that trafficislandsprotected oldertrees.

New

streetlightsplacedinseveralareas of

town

are replicas of the 1920s art

deco lampsthat line

Main

Street,

and

new

street identification signs

match

oldersigns.

These improvements were

A

home

m

theTarboroHistoricDistrict.

costly,butthey respect the characterofthedistrict

and

make

ita

more

desirable residentialarea.

Landscaping.

A

landscaping

and

tree-planting

pro-gram, in effect throughout the

town

for fifteen years,

planted thousands of street trees

and

established a routine

maintenance

program

to care forolder trees.

The

town

has a full-time horticulturist to design

and

oversee landscapingprograms.

The

Town Common,

a 25-acre

open

spacesetasidebythefoundingfathersin 1760,iscarefullymaintained

and

has

become

one

ofthe

most

significanthistoric

open

spacesintheSouth.

At

thewestern

end

ofthe

Town Common,

the restoration

ofan 1850s

Cotton

Press created an additional focus areafor tourists.

The

town

ofTarboro,

working

witha local gardenclub, landscaped a neglectedravine adja-centtothe

Cotton

Pressasanaturetrail.

The

resulting

McBryde

Trail

and

herb garden

won

a national

award

givenbythe U.S.Association of

Garden

Clubsin 1981.

Focus

on Tourism.

With

plans identifyingtourismasa potential industryforTarboro,public relations

became

afunctionofthe

town

planningdepartment,

which

pub-lishedbrochures, placed advertisementsinregional

and

national publications,

and

put Historic

Tarboro

on

stateroad

maps

and

othertourist literature. This addi-tionalpublicityhasled toregionalrecognition

and

new

investments.

Numerous

persons have decided to live

and

work

in

Tarboro

as aresultof touringthearea,

and

a

major

motion

picture

was

filmedinthe

town

in 1986. Historic DistrictWalkingTour.

The

U.S.

Department

of the Interior designated awalking tour ofthe historic areaasthe

Tarboro

HistoricDistrictNational

Recrea-tionTrail. Tourists areguidedalongthetrailbyacolor

brochure.

Renovation ofthe Blount-Bridgers House.

One

of the

most

significant

accomplishments was

the

adaptiverenovation ofthe

Blount-Bridg-ers

House

(circa 1808) asacivic

and

cul-turalcenter.

The

three

and

one-halfstory

mansion,builtbyrevolutionary

war

Gen-eral

Thomas

Blount,

now

servesasanart

museum,

tour headquarters, meeting fa-cility,

and

recitalhall,

and

isalsoleasedfor private parties

and

receptions.

To

fund

thisrestoration,almost$325,000wasraised

bya localcitizens

committee

that

worked

with

town

officials. Half ofthetotal

was

donated

by localbusinesses

and

individu-als;theremaining funds

came

from

public

and

private agencies

and

foundations..

Operating funds

come

from

annual

con-tributionsbythe

town

of Tarboro,

revitaliza-Downtownrevitalization.

tionprojects

were

undertakenin

two

neigh-borhoods

adjacentto

downtown.

Over

$5

millioninpublicfunds

were

investedinthe

Panola Heights area, a low- to

moderate-income

minority neighborhood,to

improve

homes, streets, water

and

sewer systems,

storm drainage

and

flood control,

and

land-scaping.

As

in the historic district, low-interestloans

and

grantstoboth

homeown-ers

and

landlords resulted inadramatically

improved

housingstock. Sincealarge por-tionofthe

neighborhood

fellwithin a

Na-tionalRegister HistoricDistrict, rehabilita-tions

were

sensitivetothehistoricelements

of individualstructures. In

two

cases,paint research

on

particularly significant houses was used to determine original Victorian colors

and

toserveas

models

forother reno-vations.

On

the oppositeside of

downtown,

the

Deans

Heightsarea,a low-to

moderate-in-come

mill village, also

underwent

revitalization. This

project

saw

theinvestment ofapproximately $3millionin

publicfundsfor streetimprovements, water

and

sewerline replacements,storm drainage improvements,landscaping,

and

rehabilitation.

One

turn-of-the-century mill house, threatenedwithdemolitionfor a street-wideningproject,

was

moved

and

restored to its originalappearance.

The

renovationservedas a

model

for otherrehabilitations by showingthat historicpreservationdoes notdealsolelywith the architecturallysignificant

mansions

ofthe well-to-do. Preservationcan

and

must

reflect the history of

working

people

and

their influence

on

the

growth and developmentofanarea.

The

stabilizationofthe historic

district,PanolaHeights,and

Deans

Heights preservedalarge

residen-tial population base that

needed

the services

and goods

of

down-town.

The

next step

was

to strengthen the

downtown

itself.

Downtown

Revitalization

In 1963, a plan forthe

redevel-opment

of

downtown

Tarborocalled forthe clearanceofseveralblocks

on

either side of the

commercial

areafor parking

and

future

devel-opment. Fortunatelythisplan

was

shelved.

The

proposed

demolitions

would

haveleveled a large portion of the

his-toricdistrictandsignificant

commercial

buildingsinlower

downtown.

With

funding provided bythe

CDBG

program

in 1975, the

town

beganthe planningeffort

needed

toreverse the

Housingrehabilitations in thePanolaHeightsarea,a low-income

minority neighborhood, weresensitive to the historicelementsof

individualstructures.

steady declineof

downtown

Tarboro.

When

plans

were

completed,

town

leaders

began

thearduous taskofpackaging

and

seeking fundsto

implement

a varietyofpublic

and

private

improvements

for

downtown.

The

firststep

was

to tacklethe

most

significant

element

ofthe

downtown

plans-attracting residentialdevelopment.

By

chance,twoprocessesoccurredin1978.

Town

leaders

wanted

residential

develop-ment;

Howard

Memorial

PresbyterianChurch

wanted

aqualitylife-careretirementcenter inTarboro.

Through

carefulnegotiations, the ideasmerged.

Market

studiesconvinced

thechurchthat

downtown

would

bea

good

locationforitsfacility.

The

town

agreedto participateby seeking funds toacquire the necessarysite

and

bytaking stepsto revital-izethe surrounding

commercial

areas.

Al-though

this

was

a simple concept, it took

almost

two

years topackagetheproject. In1979,anapplication

was

filedwith

HUD

foran

Urban

Development

Action

Grant

(UDAG)

thatleveraged pro-jected private investments ofthe Presbyterianretirement

center,

named

The

Albemarle,withpublicexpendituresfor overall

downtown

revitalization.

The

grant

was awarded

in 1980.

The

package included fundsforsiteacquisition

and

installationofutilities forthe Albemarle,acquisition

and

development

of Riverfront

Common,

acquisition

and

de-velopment

ofthreeoff-streetparkinglots,establishment of

a low-interest loan

program

for

commercial

properties, installationof bricksidewalks

and

landscaping along

Main

Street,variousstreetimprovements, andacquisitionof deteriorated

com-mercial buildings in lower

down-town.

The

funding for this

program

came

from

many

sources.

The

UDAG

itself

amounted

to $2.66 million,

which

in turn leveraged $3.39 million in other public

in-vestments

and

$16.7 million in private funds, for a total of ap-proximately$23million. Foratown of 11,000 people such an

invest-ment

had

a

tremendous

impact

on

thelocal

economy.

In 1980, theNational Trustfor Historic Preservation designated

Tarboro

as

one

of onlythirtycitiesnationwide to

partici-pateintheNational

Main

Street

Demonstration

Program. This

program

solidifiedTarboro's planfor

weaving

historic preservation into

downtown

revitalization

and

economic

development.

neededtoinduce

commitment

from

downtown

merchants

tosupport

and

participatein therevitalizationeffort.

The

Main

Street

approach

has four focus areas-design,

eco-nomic

restructuring, promotion,

and

organization.

Each

element

was

incorporated into the

downtown

planning

program and

coordinated withactivitiesplannedunderthe

UDAG

project. Highlightsofthe

more

significant

down-town

projects include:

• The Albemarle.

The

$14.4 million

Albemarle

Retire-ment

Center,

completed

in 1984, contains 150

apart-ment

units

and

forty skillednursingbeds.

The

complex

islocated

on

aseven-acresiteadjacentto

Main

Streetin

the once-deteriorated lower

downtown

area,

and

its

buildingsare sensitivetothe architectureandscaleof

downtown

Tarboro.

The

facilityoffersatotal,life-care

environment

formiddle-to

upper-income

persons

who

come

from

Tarboro,eastern

North

Carolina,

and

sev-eral otherstates.

The

complex

includes amedical

and

nursing wing, dining facility, auditorium, social

and

cultural rooms, a bank, beauty salon,

and

landscaped

privatecourtyards.This

town

withina

town

hasover200

residents

and

approximately 120 employees.

• CourthouseSquare.

Courthouse

Square,

completed

_in

1981, created a

major

open

spaceintheheartof

down-town

Tarboro.

The

$700,000projectprovideda

beauti-fullylandscapedgreen

and

a

visual link

from

Main

Street tothe architecturally

signifi-cant

Edgecombe

County

Courthouse.

Landscaping

includes azalea beds, iron fencing,widebrickwalkways,

large trees

and

an oval re-flecting pool for the court-house.

•

Downtown

Landscaping.

Landscaping along

Main

Streetdramatically improved

the visual qualityof the

down-town

area.

New

brick side-walks, restorationof the

origi-nal art

deco

lamps,cast iron

grates containing Darlington oaks,

and

underground

utilitieshaveunified theurban

environment from

Riv-erfront

Common

tothe

Town Common.

The

project,

funded by the

UDAG

program, cost approximately

$700,000.

•

Downtown

Renovation.

Downtown

Tarboro, _{listed in}

theNaiional Register ofHistoricPlaces,has

numerous

buildings that areboth historically

and

architecturally significant.

Through

the

Main

Street program, free architectural assistance

was

providedtostore

owners

to assurehistoricallyappropriaterenovations.

A

program

ofreduced interestloans

and

grants(aswellasfederal

Courthouse squareis thefocal point ofdowntown Tarboro andbest

symbolizesitsrevitalizationefforts.

tax credits)offered privateincentives. Private lending institutions in

Tarboro

set

up

a$1.5 million loan pool,

which produced

more

than thirtyhistoricallysensitive renovations. This rehabilitation

program

resulted in

343

new

permanent

jobs

and

157constructionjobs. Off-StreetParking.

To

make downtown more

accessible

and

competitive, funding

was

secured for the acquisi-tionofland

and

constructionoffouroff-streetparking

lots.

The

lots,designedtobeasunobtrusiveaspossible, are hidden behind

Main

Street shops. Fencing

and

vegetation buffer thelots

from

thestreet. Several stores

completed

rear renovations to providepedestrian ac-cess

from

theparking lots;however, parking

and

two-way

vehicular access

remain

on

Main

Street.

The

plan-ning

department

and

downtown

merchants

determined

that any removal of parking

and

vehicular access (or mailing)

on

Main

Street

would

greatly

harm

the

mar-ketability

and

economic

healthof

downtown.

Riverfront

Common.

The

area

around

the

Tar

River,

which

forms the eastern

boundary

of

downtown,

had

become

overgrown and

derelictovertheyears.

With

the

Albemarle completed

directly across the street, the

town

feltthattheareashouldbe improved, notonlyfor

useby

Albemarle

residentsbutforthe

enjoyment

ofall

citizens.

The

development and

landscaping of River-front

Common,

partofthe1760

Town

Common

system,

was

completed

in1983.

Most

of the area

was

left in a natural state that features large cypress

and

poplar trees, while other areas

were

landscaped with azalea

gardens

and

walking trails.

Several dilapidated structures

were

acquired

and

demolished

tocreatenecessary

open

spaces

andreclaim portionsofthe

origi-nalpublic

common.

One

keyaspectofthe

down-town urban

design plan dealt

with linkages of

open

spaces.

These

projects have created a visual

and

pedestrian link

between

the

Town

Common

on

thewestern

end

of

downtown

and

Riverfront

Common

on

the eastern end.

Courthouse Square

formsaperpendicular

axis inthe center.

Conclusion

Tarboro

's

accomplishments

are extraordinaryin lightof

itssize

and economic

base.

A

revitalization

program

such

as the

one

in

Tarboro

takes time, often years, to reach

fruition. Italsotakeslonghours of

work

and

great

amounts

ofcreativity,patience,

and stamina-and

funding,ofcourse,

imple-ment

similarprograms.

Success oftenboils

down

tothepersonalities,degree

of

commitment, and

leadershipqualitiesofahandfulof people,

who

takeit

upon

themselvesto really

do

some-thingabouttheirtown'sproblems.

The

keytoTarboro's

success

was

a

team

ofdedicated

community

leaders

who

took

some

extraordinarymeasures.

Remarkable

proj-ects resulted,andterrific

economic

gains

were

realized.

Plannersin

Tarboro

spent

many

hours with represen-tatives of

communities from

several states discussing themergingofhistoricpreservationwith

downtown

re-vitalization. After

working

withthesedelegations sent tolearn

"how

Tarboro

didit,"it

became

easytopredict

whichof those

communities

could

do

ittoo. Survivalfor

many

small towns

depends on

community

leadersthat arewilling to take creativemeasures tokeepthe

town

competitive.

And

the

word

competitiveisused loosely, forthere are

many

instancesin

which

asmall

town

can neverregainthe

economic

healthof anearlier era.

Tarboro was

aggressiveinsecuringstate,federal,

and

privategrants.

Of

course,

many

governmental sources

are

no

longer availableor havebeenreduced. But

re-gardlessof the fundingsource,itisnecessarytohavea

town planning staffthatnot only plans,but also seeks

fundingfortheproposalsoutlinedin theplans.

Some-one on

thestaff

must

keepabreastofchanginglaws

and

regulations and the variety of funding sources, both

public and private, that are available for

making

an

abstractproposalinto aconcretereality. Creativityisa key

word

in this process.

The

most

unlikelyfunding sourcequite often

becomes

themissinglinkin

making

a projectworkable.

Two

additional points should bestressed regarding the

Tarboro

experience. First,good,solidplanningisa prerequisitetosuccessful projectimplementation. Sec-ond, areauniversitiescan provideexcellent

and

afford-ableresources forsmallercommunities.

In Tarboro,

much

remains to be

done

(see

On

the Horizon, opposite).

Even

withallthis effort, the

town

continuestobeovershadowedeconomicallybyitslarger,

more

dynamic

neighbors.

The

keystoTarboro'ssuccess are the recognition

and

understandingofitsrolein the regionandthe

development

of planswhich accentuate and

promote

itshistoricsmall

town

atmosphere.

References

TarboroHistoric District Study, March 1976, 61 pp., Urban Design Class,Departmentof Cityand RegionalPlanning,University of

NorthCarolinaatChapelHill.

Tarboro,NorthCarolina:

A

DesignDevelopmentPlan, 1977,53pp., InterdisciplinaryDesignTeamfromtheSchoolofDesign,North

Carolina State University, Raleigh,NorthCarolina.

Commercial MarketAnalysis: Tarboro,NorthCarolina,May, 1978,73

pp.,Zuchelli,Hunter andAssociates,Inc.,Annapolis,Maryland.

On

the

Horizon

TarboroPlanning DirectorLorenzo

Carmon

says that

"Down-town Tarboro

isabustling place

from

8to5

on

weekdays, but

atnight

and

on weekends

it isalittlequiet."

He

citesa special

need

for

downtown

restaurants

and and

otherattractions that willenticepeopletothe areaduring non-businesshours.

Additional grants

and

investments in

downtown

Tarboro

may

lead to

some

ofthesechanges.

The

town

recently received a$100,000grant

from

theN.C.

Main

StreetIncentiveProgram, whichwillbe usedtofundadditional

downtown

rehabilitation projects.

The

town hopes

to rehabilitate thirteen tofifteen

downtown

propertiesbyusing thesefundsto

make

10 percent

incentivegrants(in

which 90

percent ofthe rehabilitationcosts

come

from

private funds).

Through

the

combination

ofpublic

and

privatemonies, the

town

isexpectinga totalinvestment throughthis

program

of$1.3million.

New

storesaregoing

up

on

the"100" block of

Main

Street, across

from

theAlbemarle.

These

structuresarebeingbuiltby

aprivatedeveloper

on

propertypurchased

and

clearedbythe

town

through

UDAG

funds. Additionalpropertieshave

been

renovatedinthe"200"block.

Tarboro

isfortunateto havea

committed

downtown

mer-chants group,

which

meets weekly

and

plans

downtown

festi-valsand otherevents.

The

group began meeting

actively

when

rumors

ofa

suburban shopping

mall

began

a couple ofyears ago.

Though

the mall has not

been

built, other shopping

centers have

been

built

on

the outskirtsof

Tarboro

inrecent years.

Two

structures

on

Main

Street have

been

renovated

and

convertedtomini-malls.

Carmon

notesthatsuch mini-malls havenot beensuccessful nationally,but theyhave

worked

in

Tarboro. Inciting factorsfor thissuccess,

Carmon

pointsout

thatthemalls serveasabridge

between

parkinglots

and

Main

Streetbusinesses. In

one

ofthe mini-malls,

most

ofthespace

isusedfor offices,whiletheother mini-mallisprimarilyretail.

Another

importantfactor inassessingthe healthof

down-town Tarboro

is

thenumberof

personsemployed

there.

As

the

countyseat,there are

numerous

employees

incounty

adminis-trative offices, thecounty courthouse,

and

attorney'soffices.

Carolina

Telephone

hasover

500 employees

atits

downtown

Tarboro

headquarters.

On

the

home

front, residences in

Tarboro

continue tobe renovated

and

restored.

HUD

312

rehabilitationfunds have been usedtorestorefour

homes

inthehistoric district inthe pastfew months. Additionalassistancefor

homeowners

inthe historicdistrictaswell as inother

neighborhoods

should

be-come

available soon,

under

the restructured

HUD

312

pro-gram.

Though

sourcesof funds havechanged,leaders

and

citizens in

Tarboro

continuetouseinnovative

methods

tosecurethe public

and

privatefunds

needed

tomaintaintherevitalization efforts

begun

overfifteenyears ago.