Saving the Chancellor's House

In last week's blog, we discussed the concept of adaptive reuse and gave some examples of its employ here on UNCG's campus. This week we'll look at an adaptive reuse success story that could have only happened through the joint efforts of the wider UNCG community and Historic Preservation groups.

Designed by Harry Barton of Greensboro and built in 1922, the President's Residence (as it was then called) served as home to almost all the heads of the college and university from Foust through Sullivan. When the University began leasing a home to serve as the new Chancellor's residence in 1996, Chancellor Sullivan moved to the Sunset Drive house and left the old Chancellor's house without a resident or purpose for the first time in its existence.

Chancellor's Residence, ca. 1960

The Chancellor's residence at Spring Garden St. had been in need of repairs and updates before Chancellor Sullivan's arrival at UNCG, and by 1999, the situation had worsened to the point that the board of trustees voted to demolish the house. It was thought that the cost to renovate the house had become too great and that, ironically, there was more value in the land it was on for "green space and future expansion for a signature building."

Very shortly after the decision to demolish the house was announced, a movement started by Carolyn Maness (Alumna-1946) and Jean Gordon (Professor of History-Emerita) sought to try to save the house from being destroyed. Gathering the forces of UNCG alumni, a letter-writing campaign ensued which helped to slow the demolition process. During this time also, help to save the house was recruited from Preservation North Carolina, a private non-profit statewide historic preservation organization. With their help, a compromise was reached to save the house.  If the money could be raised to move and renovate the house, there was a possibility of saving it. The estimate to move and renovate was set just at 2 million dollars and those interested in saving the house had just under a year to raise that sum.  Meanwhile, other interested groups, such as Preservation Greensboro, Inc. and current students of the University joined in the effort to raise the money. An "Afternoon on the Lawn" event was staged by UNCG student groups to encourage awareness and donations.

House on the move, June 2003

A large part of the success of the project was the clear vision for the new use of the house. Many alumni had suggested the house could be used as an admissions and vistors center, and with the blessing and support of their families, it was decided that the house would become the Jane Harris Armfield and Emily Harris Preyer Admissions and Vistors Center, named after two alumnae who had supported the preservation effort. This clear vision for the purpose of the building was an important factor in raising funds for the move and renovation. Preservation North Carolina leased the house from the University in late 2002 for a period of two years, which allowed them to move and renovate the house.

Over several weeks in May-June 2003, the house was lifted, moved, and re-set at its current location at 1400 Spring Garden St, just 900 feet from its original location. Renovations began immediately and continued through the end of 2004. The house was turned over to the University in January 2005 and The Jane Harris Armfield and Emily Harris Preyer Admissions and Visitors Center was officially dedicated in May 2005.

Armfield-Preyer Center, June 2005 (photo-UNCG Image Collection)

The Chancellor's house is an example of what can go right when communities work together for a greater purpose. Alumni, students, faculty, the wider UNCG community, and preservationists succeeded in what, at times, seemed an impossible task. The house, once deemed an insignificant building not worth saving, has been transformed into a focal point on campus. That transformation began with the effort to educate the community on the history of the building and its architectural merits. It continued with the effort to reach out and find donors and willing partners to help with creative alternatives to save the building. Adaptive reuse became the mechanism by which the house found new life as our Admissions and Visitors Center.

Chancellor's Residence on the Move

In 1922, the Building Committee of the Board of Directors at the North Carolina College for Women (now UNCG) reported that the state government had approved a measure to allow for the construction of an official home for the president of the institution. This home, according to the official meeting minutes of the Board, would give the president a residence "where he can be at all times in close touch with the faculty and student body." Greensboro architect Harry Barton (who also designed the Quad, Aycock Auditorium, and four other campus buildings) was tasked with the construction.

Chancellor's Residence, circa 2003

This stately Georgian home served as the official residence for campus leaders from President Julius Foust through Chancellor Patricia Sullivan. During the years, it served as a home and a site for hosting special events and dignitaries. Robert Frost, Eleanor Roosevelt, Madeleine L'Engle, and William F. Buckley were all entertained there. But in 1996, Sullivan moved from the residence to a home in Irving Park, which the campus continues to use rent-free thanks to a contribution from the Bryan Foundation.

The Chancellor's Residence stood vacant for three years, and campus trustees and administrators began to debate the home's future. Could it be renovated, or should it be demolished to make way for new construction? In September 1999, the Board of Trustees voted to raze the building, noting that a major renovation of the home into office space would cost more money than constructing a new building  and citing an opportunity for development of new office space on the valuable site.

Alumni and other concerned citizens quickly spoke up. Letters flooded into offices of campus administrators, and letters to local newspaper editors were published asking the Board to reconsider. But in 2000, the demolition recommendation proceeded with approval from the UNC Board of Governors and the Council of State. The organization Preservation North Carolina (PNC) began advocating for the residence's renovation, arguing the building's importance based upon its connection to UNCG's history, its contribution to the appearance of the campus, and the prominence of its architect. Just three weeks before the house's scheduled demolition date, UNCG administrators gave PNC until mid-2001 to raise the estimated $1.8 million necessary to relocate and renovate the building. PNC was able to privately raise the necessary funds (after a few deadline extensions), and on June 7, 2003, the 420-ton home was moved to its new location (900 feet from its old site). Private donors also funded necessary interior and exterior renovation work.

Chancellor Sullivan and former Chancellor William E. Moran
with the Chancellor's Residence on its moving day, 2003

In 2005, the Chancellor's Residence officially reopened as the Jane Harris Armfield and Emily Harris Preyer Admissions and Visitors Center. As PNC noted in a letter to supporters of the project, the house could continue its usefulness and "provide enticing space for student recruitment and alumni development ... [and] bear witness to the major advances in the higher education of women made during the 20th century in North Carolina, while helping shape the future of the university."