Page 97 - South Mississippi Living - August, 2024

FACING PAGE: Transit Center in Gulfport. ABOVE LEFT: Quarles House in Long Beach. ABOVE RIGHT: World War II Heritage City designation in Pascagoula.
Paola, Richard Bennett, Courtney Cuevas, Jenny Levens, and myself were the main forces behind the restoration project.”
The house is currently open for private and educational tours.
For many years the Coast Transit Authority's (CTA) Gulfport Transit Center was a public library. Built in 1966, the structure is in the New Formalist style. It was severely damaged in Hurricane Katrina and targeted for demolition. Eley Guild Hardy Architects principal David Hardy and CTA Director Kevin Coggin stepped forward as champions.
“My original interest in the historic Harrison County Gulfport Library stems from my high school fascination with architecture as I was directed to the Gulfport location as the only library in the Harrison County system that had books on architecture,” Hardy says.
Hardy thought it would be wonderful to restore a structurally sound building and preserve a piece of Gulfport's history. The saving grace for the library structure was its location next to the CTA parking structure, making it a crucial component of the CTA project planning and the multi-year pursuit of federal grants required for its restoration and adaptive reuse as
the new Gulfport Transit Center.
“We are honored that this project, ten years in the
making, has been recognized by the Mississippi Heritage Trust,” Hardy said.
In 2022, the City of Pascagoula was designated by the National Park Service as a World War II Heritage City, which recognizes the one city or region in each state that made the greatest contribution to the war effort. This designation involved an extensive application process.
“My friend Martin Hegwood was instrumental
in identifying the program and was convinced that Pascagoula exceeded all the criteria for the designation,” says Mayor Jay Willis. “The City was fortunate to work with Martin and our Historic Preservation Commission to conduct the strategic research efforts needed to formulate our application to the National Park Service which Martin expertly produced.”
A citywide celebration was held on Singing River Island, site of the former Naval Station Pascagoula, to recognize this designation. The city has WWII Heritage City banners down Ingalls Avenue leading to the East Bank entrance of Ingalls Shipbuilding and signs at each of the three entrances to the city.
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