Owners of historic properties who want to apply to receive a grant from the City's Historic Preservation Fund in 2017 are required to attend a pre-proposal meeting on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 10 a.m. in Room 511 of the City County Building.  Is that you? Got it on your calendar? Good. Let's look at some results of the grants given during the past two years. 

2015 grant recipients (Year 1)

• Alfred Buffat Homestead, 1717 Loves Creek Road
• Lloyd Branson House, 1423 Branson Ave., phase I
• Kern's Bakery, 2110 Chapman Highway
• McMillan Flats, 507 N. Central St.
• Metropolitan Planning Commission Historic Resource Inventory
• Park City Church, 2204 Linden Ave.

Since the grants were distributed in late 2015, four of the projects have been completed. 

The Kern's Bakery Building has a new façade. (photo credit: Knoxville Mercury)

Park City Presbyterian Church has a new roof and gutters on the main building. The Alfred Buffat Homestead received foundation and structural repair. And the Metropolitan Planning Commission used their grant to help inventory mid-century neighborhoods and buildings as prospective candidates for the National Register of Historic Places. Read the report and see the list of 82 structures evaluated at KnoxMPC.org/historic. 

2016 grant recipients (Year 2)

• Mabry-Hazen House restoration, 1711 Dandridge Ave.
• Historic Riverhouse, 614 W. Hill Ave.
• Tennessee Theatre, 604 S. Gay St.
• Craighead-Jackson House, 1000 State St.
• Lloyd Branson House, phase II
• First Christian Church building, 211 W. Fifth Ave.
• Keener Building, 701 World’s Fair Park Drive
• Knox Heritage, National Register administrative grant; and
• Bijou Theatre, 803 S. Gay St.

Today, the Tennessee Theatre has a newly restored blade and marquee outfitted with LED lights. (photo credit: Saul Young / Knoxville News Sentinel)

The historic Bijou Theatre, just two blocks away, has a repaired interior stairwell and new HVAC system. And the Lloyd Branson house, built in 1922 for prominent Knoxville artist Lloyd Branson, has new windows and dormers above the front porch styled to match the home's original design. Facebook users can watch a video tour of the home, whose interior is still being renovated..

2017 grant recipients (Year 3)

Proposals for 2017 grants are due on Feb. 14, and grant recipients will be announced sometime in May. But you can't submit a proposal unless you're at the Jan. 11 meeting. For additional deadlines, information and a PDF of the RFP, visit the Purchasing section of the City's website.