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Have
you driven past the Old High School lately? Have you seen
the workers and equipment? The walls will soon be going back up
-- rebuilding is under way!
Now, we need your help more than ever. With rebuilding come
expenses, and the bills are coming in! The
Cornerstone Campaign is your opportunity to help, it's time to step up and push it to its goal of $100,000.
The campaign was launched to help
start this restoration
of the front section of the Old Hattiesburg High School. Southern Miss College of Arts and
Letters has made a commitment to use the building for a variety of classes and performance groups
once its renovated. The $100,000 will help pay for
restoration of the historic facade. Our shopping list includes a lot of
brick, steel and
concrete, so we need your help.
Why should you help? Here are just a few
reasons:
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You support downtown revitalization.
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You believe in using rather than
losing valuable landmark buildings
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You can see the vision of a fully restored Old
High School, alive and functioning, once again filled with
students and activities
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You can visualize the economic impact of this
project on downtown and neighborhood development
-
You understand the value of a thriving,
growing downtown to the City of Hattiesburg.
Want to help?
Go to the website -- click on Old High School -- to check out
the list of donors. If you're name isn't on it, it's time to
get on board the Cornerstone Campaign. It's as
easy as clicking on Make a Donation on the HHDA website,
www.downtownhattiesburg.com. Or, mail your
tax-deductible contribution to: Hattiesburg Landmark
Preservation, Inc., Box 150, Hattiesburg, MS 39403. Questions? Call
601-583-4329 and/or read the article below.
From the Week of July 1, 2008
The long-awaited envelope restoration of the old Hattiesburg
High School is ready to begin, announced officials with the
Historic Hattiesburg Downtown Association. “The week before the
May 29, 2007, arson fire, we had put the envelope restoration
drawings out for bids. The fire caused the project to come to a
screeching halt,” said Sarah Newton, President of HHDA. The
Downtown Association is launching the Cornerstone Campaign this
week to rally financial support for Phase 1 of the restoration
project.
Following
the fire, officials spent the year planning, redesigning,
securing funding sources, seeking contractors’ bids, and other
preparation work and now they are ready to award the
construction contract. The low-bidder was local contractor,
Finlo Construction Company, Inc. The amount of the project
including Finlo’s contract, professional fees and contingency is
approximately $1.8 million. HHDA currently has $1.7 million from
what was left of the Community Heritage Preservation Grant that
put the new roof on the building prior to the fire, a Hurricane
Relief Grant that was never expended because of the fire and a
federal earmark that was announced in December 2007.
The scope of work for this Phase 1 of construction includes
erecting a steel frame that will serve as the new structural
system for the portion of the building gutted by the fire, as
well as, reconstruct the devastated front wall that was the Old
High School’s most historically distinctive feature. Plans are
that Phase 2 of restoration will hopefully begin in one year.
“It is urgent that we restore the architectural distinctiveness
of the Old High School in order for the building to maintain
it’s distinction as a Mississippi Landmark, as well as, preserve
its listing on the National Register of Historic Places. These
designations are critical for the overall funding of the project
through the sale of historic and new market tax credits,” Holt
McMullan, Vice President for Special Projects for the Downtown
Association, said.
“While Phase 1 bids for the Old High School came in as
estimated, a funding gap must be closed in order for the project
to move forward in a timely manner,” said Sarah Newton,
President of the Historic Hattiesburg Downtown Association.
According to Newton, HHDA is launching the Cornerstone Campaign
that will last for one month in which the organization intends
to raise $100,000.
“The plan is to ask 1,000 people to contribute $100 each. We
have received lots of support on the public level: through
preservation grants, hurricane relief funding, and support from
the City; now we are asking the private sector to step in and
bridge the gap. We will be sending out e-mail letters asking
people to help by responding and forwarding the e-mail to
friends, associates, co-workers and other acquaintances, for the
possibility of their participation,” Newton said.
Investors in the Cornerstone Campaign should send their
tax-deductible contribution to: Hattiesburg Landmark
Preservation, Inc., Box 150, Hattiesburg, MS 39403.
Additional information on the high school project may be
obtained on the web site:
www.downtownhattiesburg.com , or by calling 601-583-4329.
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