By Martha Woodward

Residents who are interested in historic preservation will be glad to know the Old Fifth Avenue Motel Building has received "historic designation" from the U.S. Department of the Interior. The large, white building located at the corner of 5th Avenue and Broadway Street in Downtown Knoxville will be saved and will be undergoing renovation. The building which was built in 1913,  had served the city well until recent years when it fell into ill repair.

After it was condemned in 2002 due to failure to meet building and fire codes, it was often used as temporary shelter by some of the homeless people who often gather on Broadway near the Volunteer Ministry Center. Its reputation for the last few decades was that of a skid-row, rodent and bug infested, deteriorating eye sore.

Being awarded "historic designation" means the owners, Volunteer Ministry Center, who purchased the property in 2002, will be able to sell historic tax credits which will help them as they put a financial plan together for the planned renovations.

The cornerstone of the building was laid in 1913 when the building was named Minivilla. It first opened as an upscale townhouse development. In light of its historic perspective, Volunteer Ministry Center plans to rename the structure Minivilla Manor and is hoping to build 57 one- room apartments which will be used to house the chronically homeless in Knoxville. Minivilla Manor will become "supportive housing," meaning a staff will be in place on the site to help the homeless make the transition from the street back into the mainstream.

“This announcement is absolutely a huge step,” said VMC Executive Director Ginny Weatherstone. “We have a lot of challenges in that we continue to put together the funding package and it’s complicated ... In some ways, this historic designation complicates it a little bit more. The construction costs are more than we originally anticipated.”

Officials had estimated the total cost for the renovations would be $3.6 million, but, the number may swell nearer to $6 million due to the difficulties of bringing an older building up to current codes. Receiving the historic designation also adds other building requirements.

Volunteer Ministry Center had hoped to break ground for the new facility this summer, but the date for that has been pushed back to the fall of 2008. "We certainly believe and hope we have it up and running in time for the 100th birthday of
the site which will be 2013," officials said.