ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, February 14, 1996 TAG: 9602140087
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MATT CHITTUM STAFF WRITER
No cash came with the award the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development gave Roanoke's Center in the Square for its innovative approach to urban revitalization. But being on the short list in the national competition is a pretty nice resume item to have when seeking financial help.
The award, presented Monday in New York, means the center now will likely be given serious consideration by major foundations, such as Pfizer Pharmaceutical, a supporter of the Mega Cities Project, which managed the contest for HUD.
"We won't necessarily get anything, but at least we'll be considered," said Jim Sears, president and general manager of the center. "Whereas, before, we were just one of 2,500 applicants for a grant, now we will be in the top 25."
Center in the Square was one of 17,000 organizations to receive invitations to enter the competition. More than 500 applications were weeded down to 171, then to 52 finalists, and finally 25 winners from 14 states. All 25 will be showcased at the Second United Nations Conference on Human Settlements in Istanbul, Turkey, this June. Center in the Square is the only winner from Virginia.
The idea behind the contest was to provide useful models of urban revitalization for the rest of the world. The center's application was based on its idea of providing free housing, under one roof, to five different museums and cultural organizations. Since it opened nearly 13 years ago, 80 new businesses have sprung up in the City Market area.
"Unless projects such as these are replicated in our urban areas, these places will shortly become unlivable," HUD Secretary Henry Cisneros said in recognizing the winners Monday in New York.
Sears said the fact that other communities can copy Center in the Square played a large role in its success in the judging. Nearly 40 communities have contacted Center in the Square in recent years seeking advice on how to develop their own projects.
Of the 25 projects that received the HUD award, only one besides Center in the Square was a cultural organization. The rest were housing and homeless projects, and most were in such major urban areas as New York; Washington, D.C.; and Milwaukee.
Sears said he was not surprised that Center in the Square came out a winner, but he was surprised that a project in a smaller area such as Roanoke would even be considered with those in bigger cities.
Warner Dalhouse, chairman of the center's executive committee, was less surprised.
Getting Center in the Square going and getting people to come into an area that was "previously identified as not a nice place to go after dark" was a small miracle, he said. "We really shouldn't be astonished." at this award.
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