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(rshsdepot) Cleveland, TN
From today's Chattanooga Times Free Press.
Bernie Wagenblast
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Cleveland depot to be reviewed for national register
Wednesday, December 26, 2007
By Randall Higgins
Cleveland Bureau
CLEVELAND, Tenn. -- The Tennessee Historical Commission next month will
consider placing the Southern Railway Depot here on the National Register of
Historic Places.
The depot, on Edwards Street at Five Points, was built in 1906.
Mayor Tom Rowland said the State Review Board will consider the nomination
when it meets Jan. 30 in Nashville.
"This is great news, as it comes on the heels of the ownership of the depot
property transferring from Norfolk Southern to SETHRA (Southeast Tennessee
Human Resources Agency), which will use the depot as a transportation center,"
Mr. Rowland said.
The transit system provides scheduled municipal bus service in Cleveland and
the urban area.
The national register provides recognition and assistance to preserve the
nation's heritage, the mayor said.
Properties considered for the national register are also considered for the
state register. Being placed on the national register means automatic listing
on the Tennessee register, Mr. Rowland said.
The listing also provides a protective review of federal projects that might
hurt the character of the historic property, he said.
The listing could also provide federal tax credits.
Ray Evans, SETHRA executive director, said in May that the depot will become
the transit point for bus service here and could provide a connector to bus
service to Chattanooga. He said the agency is seeking federal funding.
"The number of people riding the bus has doubled. As we continue to grow,
we'll have an extra bus on each line," Mr. Evans said then.
Mr. Evans recently told the mayor, who chairs the metropolitan transportation
planning organization, that SETHRA expects to own the building within the
next 30 days. He said SETHRA intends to restore the depot as close to the
original as possible.
Mr. Rowland said many memories were created as servicemen and women left and
returned from the depot for World War I, World War II and Vietnam.
"Our local historians report that this depot has been visited by at least six
sitting presidents," he said.
Tennessee author Alex Haley visited the depot in 1986 during the Tennessee
Homecoming celebration.
Mr. Rowland, a member of the Tennessee-Virginia Amtrak Initiative and the
Tennessee Railroad Advisory Commission, said he hopes rail passenger service
returns someday.
Until then, he said, "the bus transit system is the perfect use for this
facility."
E-mail Randall Higgins at _rhiggins_@_timesfreepress.com_
(mailto:rhiggins_@_timesfreepress.com)
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The Railroad Station Historical Society maintains a database of existing
railroad structures at: http://www.rrshs.org
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End of RSHSDepot Digest V1 #1649
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The Railroad Station Historical Society maintains a database of existing
railroad structures at: http://www.rrshs.org