A Guide to the Records of the Elmwood Park Century Project

Access and use

Location of collection:
Roanoke Public Libraries
Virginia Room
Roanoke Public Libraries
706 South Jefferson Street
Roanoke, VA 24016
Contact for questions and access:
POC: Dyron Knick
Phone: (540) 853-2073

Summary

Language:
English

Background

Scope and content:

This collection consists of 1 legal-size record storage box containing 14 folders. Materials include: meeting minutes, plans (drawings and schematics), correspondence, lists of donors and news clippings. The date range of the collection is 1979 through 1981. One of the highlights of the collection is a list of donors, either of monetary contributions or who purchased trees dedicated to the memory of loved ones. Plans and schematics of the proposed park also provide an interesting glimpse at some of the ideas generated from the committee, some of which are visible in the park today. The collection is lacking in that some of the meeting minutes were not available.

Biographical / historical:

In 1978, the City of Roanoke and downtown business community commissioned a $100,000 study to evaluate the development potential of Roanoke’s downtown core area and to prepare a plan for revitalizing it. The Elmwood Park Century Project is one of the recommendations from the study that was approved by City Council as submitted to the public as a bond issue in 1979. The bond was issued and a committee was established to ensure that all development occurring in the project would be of certain design standards. The committee was chaired by Betty B. Wood, with the following members of the committee: Dorothy L. Gibboney, Byron A. Hicks, Mary Watkins, William Watts, Louis Goodwin, Vernon Jamison, Roma Pevler and George Vogel.

Acquisition information:
Donor unknown
Arrangement:

Documents are arranged alphabetically by document type.

Physical description:
1 legal-size storage box