Taryn Ashby
The city of Gainesville’s Beautification Board recognized 11 projects at its annual awards ceremony Tuesday night at the Thomas Center.
The Board honored the 2022 recipients and acknowledged the 2020 winners who didn’t have an award night due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Each project had a summary read that contained the meaning and photos behind the work, then members from each team received a plaque from City Beautification Board Chair April O’Neal.
The City Beautification Awards started in 2019 to recognize excellence and highlight projects with outstanding aesthetic and artistic appeal. The board honors those who make a significant contribution to the community.
“The Citizen Beautification Board is a volunteer citizen board that decides which projects throughout the year truly beautify the city,” said city of Gainesville’s Beautification Board staff liaison Chelsea Proia in an interview. “We really look for projects that are original, innovative, creative, and sustainable. A project using serviceable materials and creative colors with different textures catches our eye because those aspects beautify the city.”
Projects must meet applicable building and landscaping codes to win one of the awards.
These awards are unique because it doesn’t only recognize one person from the project. The award-winning projects reflect the commitment of many individuals who spent time planning and building the structures, including owners, managers, architects, landscape architects, engineers, and designers.
“We recognize everyone who had a part in the projects to give a sense of encouragement for people to continue to not just focus on big brutalist buildings, but see the importance of environmental enhancements, landscaping and even aesthetics,” Proia said.
Here’s the list of the 2022 City Beautification Award-winning projects:
Outstanding Institutional Facility — Santa Fe College Blount Center
Public Places — Oakview Park, Unity Park, Generation Play Zone
Historic Preservation — 1908 Grand
Uniquely Gainesville — Lebowski’s Pup Pub
Sustainability — Edible Groves
Innovative Programming — Gainesville Cohousing
Adaptive Reuse — Total Home
Lodging — Hotel Eleo
Innovative Dining — Midpoint Park & Eatery