James Branch Cabell Library received the Excellence in Commercial Renovation Award at the Fan District Association Annual Meeting May 18. 

 

FDA members make nominations for the award, which is decided by a board vote based upon the criteria of  "improving Fan properties and thus enhancing the aesthetics and quality of life in the Fan." The award is given annually. Last year's recipient was the Highpoint Barbershop.

The Fan District Association is one of the most active and revered civic associations in metro Richmond. Longtime advocates for historic preservation and the integrity of the urban environment, most of its members hold properties in the so-called historic "Fan District." The Historic Fan District is an 85-block Victorian residential neighborhood immediately west of the Richmond downtown commercial area. The Fan District development followed the tracks of a late 19th  century trolley line. Developed largely in the 1880s to 1930s, the Fan includes many VCU properties. Cabell Library, like other properties west of Monroe Park, is part of the Fan.