Committee to consider former bank for archives

Jul. 1—After a motion to provide additional funding for a renovation project at the Cumberland County Archives failed to pass the Cumberland County Commission June 21, 5th District Commissioner Terry Lowe got to thinking he might know of an alternative site for the facility.

"I knew this building was available," Lowe said Tuesday outside the former Progressive Savings Bank building on S. Main St. "I never thought about this for the archives until it failed."

Lowe said he thought the building might meet the needs of the archives for storage of the county's records at a lower cost than the demolition and construction project at the current archives site on E. First St. That project was budgeted for $1.6 million to be paid for through the county's debt service fund balance and paid back through the collection of records fees over time. Construction bids pushed the project to $1.88 million.

Archivist Joyce Rorabaugh said, "We need a modern, updated space capable of protecting the records. That's why we started this — we are trusted with the records, and we have got to protect them."

But Rorabaugh has concerns that the former bank facility does not have enough space for records storage.

The former bank was built in 2005. When SmartBank acquired Progressive Savings Bank in 2020, it consolidated its operations to the N. Main St. branch and closed the S. Main St. location.

Lee Amonette is with a group of investors who purchased the property. It is not yet on the market. Amonette said he would hold off listing the property while the county considers the facility.

The building is one story with 7,100 square feet of space. The vault is approximately 8 feet by 21 feet, which is smaller than the space the archives currently uses for records storage, about 64 feet by 36 feet, Rorabuagh said.

Cumberland County Mayor Allen Foster estimated it at about 1,300 cubic feet of storage, compared to the proposed 9,000 cubic feet of vault storage in the proposed renovation.

A records vault does not have to meet the strict requirements of a bank vault, but it does need to protect records from fire and natural disasters and provide humidity and climate control.

With the current collection, Rorabaugh said half of the proposed 9,000 cubic feet of storage would be used.

"And I've got two big collections pending," she said.

Some of the collections continue to increase regularly, such as marriage licenses and trustee tax records.

"We've got to have enough room to grow," Rorabaugh continued. "To sink all this money in and five years we need to have another floor put on or something ... that's why we're going for the renovation."

Rorabaugh was also concerned about the distance to the Art Circle Public Library.

"We are back and forth to the library several times a day," she said. "And we're part of the library."

The proposed construction project would demolish the existing three-story portion of the old church property, leaving the original sanctuary that serves as a reading room. There, visitors can browse books related to area history and genealogy, use computers for searching databases of genealogical information, or look through microfilm and microfiche of area historic newspapers.

The back portion would be replaced by a two-story addition with space on the top floor for storage and access to various public records, such as court records, land deeds, marriage licenses and other records the county is required to preserve.

Rebecca Stone, 3rd District commissioner, noted the bottom floor would be used for storage of items from other county departments. That portion of the building would also be built to the same standards as the records vault.

Lowe said the proposed project retained the original church, which is more than 80 years old.

"The part we're leaving will have constant maintenance," he said.

Stone said evaluations of the building found that portion was well built. While there were some maintenance issues, Stone said many problems had been addressed, including some upgraded electrical outlets.

Nancy Hyder, 2nd District commissioner, said people should consider the bank facility with an open mind.

"Everyone needs to take a look at it and not come in and say no," she said.

The facility would need some renovations, like removing the teller drive-thru. There, commissioners proposed building a larger vault. Stone is working on numbers to construct a larger records vault at the facility, which she hopes to have when the building and grounds committee meets July 8.

She expressed concerns about the former bank.

Stone said, "It's a beautiful building, but it's not what we need."

Lowe said he thought the county could save on construction costs by working with the Tennessee College of Applied Technology, which has a building and construction program and masonry program.

The building and grounds committee meets at 4:30 p.m. July 8 at the Cumberland County Courthouse. Chairman Jack Davis, 5th District commissioner, said, "We'll have a discussion of this building or re-bidding the project, and let the people make that decision."

Heather Mullinix is editor of the Crossville Chronicle. She covers schools and education in Cumberland County. She may be reached at hmullinix@crossville-chronicle.com.