News came yesterday from MDAH’s Historic Preservation Facebook page that at the request of Meridian Mayor Percy Bland, the MDAH Board of Trustees designated Chris Risher’s Modernist gem, the Meridian Police Station, at their monthly meeting. This only days after the announcement of a Marriott Courtyard hotel going into the long-vacant Threefoot Building in downtown Meridian.
I’m in such happy shock, I’m speechless. Wow!
Categories: MDAH, Meridian, Mississippi Heritage Trust, Mississippi Landmarks, Modernism
Preservation in Mississippi 
Thank goodness (and I do mean goodness!) I hope the exterior is given a good scrubbing and painted and interior repairs are made when needed by very qualified workers who understand the importance and treat it with TLC.
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Speechless indeed. I can’t wait to see what they will DO with the building now! Congratulations on all of your and others’ dedicated work in making this happen, E.L.!
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I am not up on my Mississippi Landmark designation history but it has been quite a while since a municipality has requested a landmark designation?
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WOOHOOOOOOOOO!!!
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That could be great news for downtown, and by extension for the entire state, if the building is saved as a result.
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Sorry if this sounds dumb. But what does this mean for this building? And is this the current police station on 22nd or the former one located down by the library. I had heard the current one will be put up for auction due to owner filing for bankruptcy.
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Not dumb at all. It’s a pretty good question actually. The difference between the different number of designations can be quite confusing.
From the MDAH website…
http://mdah.state.ms.us/new/preserve/mississippi-landmarks/ accessed 9/23/2015
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I should have given a little background on where we’ve come from on the Meridian City Hall. Back in September 2013, the Meridian Star announced that the City planned to tear down the building, which they had recently vacated for a remodelled leased space on the highway. (https://misspreservation.com/2013/09/04/chris-rishers-meridian-police-station-under-threat/). Because the building is a publicly owned structure, the state Antiquities Law requires that Meridian get MDAH approval for alterations and demolition.
When the City applied for approval, MDAH staff noted its architectural significance and recommended that the MDAH Board of Trustees begin the designation process, which it did in October 2014 by placing the police station “under consideration,” which is the first of two steps in the designation process (https://misspreservation.com/2014/10/23/update-on-meridian-police-department/). The City obviously objected, and since that point, the issue has been somewhat in limbo, with the MDAH Board leaving it “under consideration” while apparently talks went on with the new city administration. The significance of the city’s letter to MDAH and MDAH’s designation is that this means the building has a future, possibly still as a city-owned building, and has thus avoided the threat of demolition that’s been hanging over it for a while.
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This is GREAT news! I am in shock!
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Really happy to hear this. Its a fine building. The Risher work sets Meridian apart as an architectural destination.
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I can’t imagine how this bizarrely progressive decision came about. Regardless of origin, thank you to to all those involved.
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Meridian, the gift that keeps giving. Posted to the WTOK-TV website 1/6/2015, Old Meridian Police Station: “Historic Designation”, Questions Raised: http://bit.ly/1MUgBde.
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This is an old thread, I know – but has anyone seen more details about the proposed micro-brewery proposed for Meridian’s former Police Station? Here’s a link to a WTOK-TV report: http://www.wtok.com/content/news/Micro-Brewery-proposed-for-downtown-Meridian-476031043.html
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Thanks, Jennfer,
Jerry? Perry?
I can think of worse uses . . . and USES ARE GOOD!
Ben
Ben Ledbetter, Architect 129 Church Street, #814 New Haven, CT 06510
203-782-1912 bl@benledbetter.com http://www.benledbetter.com http://www.flickr.com/photos/benledbetter-architect/
Ars longa, vita brevis.
>
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