Gibson City Restoration Association (GCRA) is pleased to announce that we have received another grant!! The National Trust for Historic Preservation has awarded us a matching grant of $4,000. A matching grant means that GCRA must provide proof of having the same amount of funds in our bank account to match the amount of the award.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation is a privately funded, nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., which works in the field of historic preservation in the United States. The member-supported organization was founded in 1949 by congressional charter to support the preservation of America’s diverse historic buildings, neighborhoods, and heritage through its programs, resources, and advocacy. Their motto is "People Saving Places".
GCRA plans to use the funds for creation of architectural plans and grant writing assistance, which was one of the categories we could request funding for. We have engaged with Melotte, Morse, Leonatti, and Parker (MMLP) to assist us with the architectural drawings. MMLP Ltd. provides architectural and environmental building planning and design services to institutions, public agencies, and private clients. MMLP is a leading firm in the field of Historic Preservation and Adaptive Reuse. MMLP has been preservation architect-of-record for many significant buildings in Springfield, Illinois’, including entire blocks in the Springfield Downtown Historic District. The firm and its principals have been and continue to be involved in the creative reuse and restoration of Illinois’ built heritage, both in Springfield and in Central Illinois, including the Old and New Illinois State Capital Buildings and the Dana Thomas House, to name a few.
We initially started working with MMLP after being awarded a grant through Landmarks Illinois in 2023. David Leonatti of MMLP wrote up the initial 'conditions assessment' report that has been the basis of our restoration efforts. David will be continuing along with us as we work with him to determine Phase 1 of our restoration efforts.
Roof Repairs to begin this Spring!
Last fall, we contracted with Top Quality Roofing to do a full roof replacement. Work was started in the Fall, but had to quickly stop when it was discovered the parapet walls on the North and South side were crumbling and needed to be replaced before the roof work could continue. D. Gray Tuckpointing will be repairing our parapet walls as early as next week!
Chili Crawl and Blackstone Raffle
We are hosting a Chili Crawl on March 16th. Come on out to Mark's on First starting at 11 am to pick up your map and ballot sheets.
Yes, you can vote for your favorite chili concoction. It's free to get a map and ballot, but if you want to see your favorite win the "fan favorite" category, be sure to show them some love by throwing a few dollars in their fan favorite tip jar. First and Second place will be determined by a panel of judges, but fan favorite will be determined by the public.
See the map for chili crawl locations. You can pick up a paper copy and ballot at Mark's on First starting at 11 am on Saturday March 16th. Note: We do have 2 chili entries available at Mark's on First (we had a late entry, so he's not listed on the ballot, but we'll allow write-in candidates). Visit all of the locations on the map and join us back at Mark's on First at 2:30 pm where we will tally up all the votes and announce the winners. We will also draw for the winner of the Blackstone raffle package, so get your tickets before Saturday afternoon.
We hope you enjoy this event. If it goes well, we hope to make it an annual event. So, c'mon out to Gibson City this coming Saturday and enjoy the day crawling around eating chil - all while shopping, eating and drinking at the local establishments along the way.
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