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Trenda Carter Leavitt, Beechgrove Design Landscape Architecture by Staff
Tucked away in the bustling River District of Danville Virginia, the four-story New & Miller building, built in 1886, was set to be demolished due to structural issues. Originally a harness and carriage store and stable, the building also held a rich history as it sat next to the site of the Danville Register and Bee. The city wanted to honor that history and use the space as a gathering place, so they selected Beechgrove Design Landscape Architecture to help develop a new Union Street Pocket Park. Completed in May 2021, the site sits 8' below the adjacent street level. Historic Pocket Park A major challenge the design team faced was the demolition of the four-story building that was surrounded by historic buildings, which were also undergoing renovation during the demolition. The team wanted to preserve elements of the building which were structurally sound, namely the exterior walls of the basement, to honor the former building's architecture and history. The contractors maneuvered cranes within the limited space and despite restricted construction conditions, the company was able to remove the building and carefully relocate original wood trusses and beams which were repurposed as design elements in the park, like a custom-built pergola and a beam along the sidewalk. "I noticed the historic stone foundation wall the very first time we ventured down the broken steps into the basement. It is so satisfying that the city was willing to create the park at a lower elevation to appreciate the layers of history," explained Tim Clark, President of Blair Construction, who worked as the primary contractor on the project. "The original livery windows, the underground drainage system, the recycled building columns, and the roadway foundation wall would have all been lost at a higher elevation."
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