Heritage Museum earns award

As the day of its final unveiling nears, the Waynesboro Heritage Museum is again being recognized for its massive makeover, earning an award that marks a first for the city's downtown.

Announced Monday, the prize comes from the Virginia Downtown Development Association, which allotted the project a 2007 Award of Merit. That title, reserved for efforts that demonstrate "exemplary" concept and execution, places Waynesboro among only eight other communities that will be recognized this year. Other winners include Staunton, which received an Award of Merit for Circle Design Studio, an architectural firm on Beverley Street.

This is believed to be the first time Waynesboro has ever graced the annual list of VDDA honorees.

"I think this shows the incremental progress we've always talked about seeing in downtown," said Brent Frank, president of Waynesboro Downtown Development Inc. "We're beginning to see the fruits of our labor."

Almost three years in the making, the renovation of the nearly century-old history museum has been hailed for its overhaul of both the first-floor exhibit space and a series of apartments upstairs. The combination of residential and commercial uses is something city leaders hope to see more of, describing it as a way of pumping new life into downtown.

The museum itself, set for a grand opening Saturday, is considered a critical step in redefining the district as an arts and culture center.

"This is an affirmation of all of downtown's efforts," Kimberly Watters, executive director of WDDI, said. "In the future, mixed-use buildings are going to be driving downtown. This has got to be a working, living and cultural area."

The $2.3-million renovation project was led by the Waynesboro Redevelopment and Housing Authority, which owns the building and has granted the museum a lifelong, rent-free lease.

The VDDA award is the second major honor for the revamped facility, which was previously recognized last spring by the Valley Conservation Council.

In the eyes of Shirley Bridgeforth, president of the Waynesboro Heritage Foundation, all these accolades say "great things" about the work that's been done.

"When we first started talking about doing this, we wanted to help downtown," she recalled. "We wanted to make it a grand place to visit, both for locals and tourists.

"A community's museum says something about what that community's about. This is what our community is about."

The museum will hold an opening celebration from 6 to 8 p.m. Saturday. Following that, regular operating hours will be 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays.