Wednesday, February 27, 2013
Measure offers City Council's support for private fundraising efforts aimed at preserving the building, but also reiterates that the city will not purchase the structure.
Alexandria City Council adopted a resolution Tuesday night offering its support for private fundraising efforts aimed at preserving the Carver Nursery School building and also reiterating that the city will not be a purchaser of the property. “There are some beginnings of some fundraising efforts in the community to purchase the property, unfortunately those are very tardy efforts,” said Councilman Justin Wilson, who created the resolution with Councilman Paul Smedberg. “But I think the city wants to show support for those efforts but also simultaneously convey that the city will not be the purchaser of last resort for this property as we move forward.” Local preservationists worked frantically over the last several months to circumvent …
Monday, February 18, 2013
Owner of the Carver Nursery says he hopes a viable offer will come forward to save the Fayette Street building.
The best thing for the community would be to have the Carver Nursery building preserved, restored and programmed, says the owner of the building, but it’s not that simple. “I am a preservationist,” says Bill Cromley, a developer and owner of the North Fayette Street structure, which has been in the Alexandria spotlight recently for a looming deadline permitting its demolition. The community has engaged in recent discussion about the building, which was built to school African-American children during World War II and later was an American Legion post for African-Americans not able to join whites-only posts. “I’ve preserved more buildings in this town than any one who has had something to say about this issue put together,” Cromley says. …
Thursday, February 14, 2013
Former Vice Mayor Andrew Macdonald says preserving Alexandria’s African American history is just as important as preserving the home of Robert E. Lee.
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Thursday, February 14
To the Editor: Why preserve the Carver Nursery School? Why preserve history? There was a day when Alexandria’s waterfront was a real working waterfront; when it had some working-class character. There was a time, too, when African Americans couldn’t attend local public schools and depended upon places like the Carver Nursery School to educate their children. The era of “separate but equal” is an indelible part of Alexandria’s history that must be preserved. It is embodied in a building that is as important to save as the hotel where George Washington dined. But the history told by the former Carver Nursery School will soon be forgotten if our primary motive is money and the right to develop whatever you own as you see fit. Bill Cromley, …
C.K.
11:03 am on Monday, March 4, 2013
Great questions Doug! Mr. Walker has property in Old Town he could sell to buy this building if it was that important to him but one doesn't see him offering to do that. Of course Mr. Walker and everyone else (who won't put there own money into the building), have no problem expecting the current owner to spend his money and not be able to control what happens to the building. I wish Mr. Walker … more ›