Downtown’s Blue Bell Building In Greensboro Nominated For Historic Recognition

Press release from the City of Greensboro:

Post Date:08/24/2020 9:35 AM

The Blue Bell Company Plant, 620 S. Elm St., has been nominated for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places, the US’s official list of properties worthy of preservation. As part of the vetting process, public input on the property meeting the criteria for the register is being sought.

Share your comments with Mike Cowhig at 336-382-8353 or Stefan-leih Geary at 336-412-6300 by October 7.

The City participates in the review of national register nominations by requesting public input and will also hold a public hearing about the Blue Bell property. That meeting will be held virtually at 4 pm August 26 before the Historic Preservation Commission.

City Council will then consider the nomination at one of its upcoming meetings prior to it being considered by the NC National Register Advisory Committee in October. The last step to being listed on the national register is approval by the National Park Service.

When a property is listed in the national register the owner becomes eligible for historic rehabilitation income tax credits. Listing does not restrict the owner’s use of private funds to maintain or alter their property.

Forty-two individual properties and 12 historic districts in Greensboro are listed on this national register. The last Greensboro property added was the James H. and Anne B. Willis House, 707 Blair St., in 2015.

Blue Bell and three other Greensboro properties are also nominated for Guilford County Landmark designation. The other properties are:

• Spencer and Lucy Haithcock House, 815 Pearson St.
• Hackney-Foust House, 921 Spring Garden St.
• Frank and Minnie Lyon Leak House, 909 N. Elm St.

City Council will also consider these nominations at an upcoming meeting.

This press release was produced by the City of Greensboro. The views expressed here are the author’s own.