Five outstanding projects, all located in the Magnolia State, received kudos from AIA Mississippi when the chapter held its annual convention in Sandestin, Fla., on June 21–24. The winners include two new projects and three additions/restorations. Californians Larry Scarpa, FAIA; Jennifer Siegal, AIA; and photographer Marvin Rand served as jurors.

Honor Award and Sambo Mockbee Membership Award

Mississippi Library Commission Headquarters Building, Jackson, Miss., a joint venture of Duvall Decker Architects PA and Burris/Wagnon Architects, for the State Of Mississippi's Bureau of Building, Grounds, and Real Property Management
The Mississippi Library Commission had the distinction of receiving this year’s sole Honor Award, as well as the Sam Mockbee Membership Award determined by the collective vote of the AIA Mississippi membership. It serves all public libraries and individual citizens within the state. The facility houses the agency’s staff, collections, and educational support programs—as well as public reading and collection areas, offices, meeting spaces, a gallery, training areas and a computer data center. The building’s main reading room overlooks the heart of the project: an exterior green lawn set against the surrounding woods. The jury reached a consensus on presenting this year’s only Honor Award to the headquarters building, citing its “Modernist plan with strong understudy of Classical building.” They noted that “the project is well detailed without being heavy handed. It offers very good light quality in the main reading room; it feels like a grand hall.”
Photography by Timothy Hursley and Eric Hudson.

Honor Citations

Diaz Deck/Boathouse, Madison, Miss., by Duvall Decker Architects PA, for G. Joseph Diaz Jr.
The owner required a shelter for his ski boat, a deck accessible from the master bedroom, and an enclosure for the side garden. The architect intentionally shaped a minimal steel frame, slatted cypress enclosure, and copper roof to form the deck/boathouse. The construction is additive, but the shape and the repetition of components provide cohesion, and the resulting figure is “at once ghost-like and substantial.” The jury noted, “This nice small project serves as a gateway to the house from the river, just as its circulation forms a way to view the river. The materialization of the project is well done.”
Photo © Roy T. Decker.

Restoration of Yalobusha County Courthouses, Water Valley and Coffeeville, Miss., by Belinda Stewart Architects PA, for the Yalobusha County Board of Supervisors
The small rural county of Yalobusha has two court districts and therefore two courthouses, both of which are significant historic anchors for their communities. These courthouses were in danger of being abandoned by the county for a new modern, centrally located courthouse. The larger, Water Valley Courthouse, was originally constructed in 1886, with modifications following a fire in 1913 that rendered the upper floors of this three-story masonry, steel, and concrete building structurally unusable. The exterior rehabilitation of the building included reinstallation of the historic decorative cornice, cleaning and tuckpointing of the exterior masonry, and restoration of the terra-cotta details. Inside, rehabilitation included restoration of stone tile flooring, plaster, wood moldings, and structural shoring. The jury noted how the restoration returned the buildings to their original grand state with subtle improvements. “Historic preservation is in the details,” they said, “and this project carried through to the details very well.”
Photo © Jack Kotz.

Natchez Trace Visitors Center, Clinton, Miss., by Belinda Stewart Architects PA, for the City of Clinton
The City of Clinton asked for a design reminiscent of traditional local residential building types, to be built adjacent to the Natchez Trace Parkway. The building contains a multi-media/conference room with adjacent catering kitchen, history/museum room, gift shop/reception area, public restrooms, vending, and general staff offices. Its plan uses forms from traditional housing, including a dog trot that separates public space from the work areas. The building, which appears to be two stories from the outside, has a full-height interior to give the rooms the scale required to feel historic while still maintaining a modern edge. Front, back, and side porches add to the grand scale while they allow visitors to rest and take in the views. All exterior handrails, columns, steps, and wood details are re-milled 100-year-old heart cypress. The jury termed this project “a traditional building with Modern sensibilities.” They remarked on the “very nicely done courtyards and walkways. The rhythm of façade and openings is pleasing.”
Photo © Jack Kotz.

Merit Award

Mendenhall Gymnasium Addition/Renovation, Mendenhall, Miss., by Duvall Decker Architects PA, for Mendenhall High School
This existing gymnasium needed strategic renovation plus an addition that would enhance the use of the facility. The addition included a new entrance and ticket booth, public lobby to accommodate home and visitor entrances, two health classrooms, a new concession facility, and accessible toilets. The lobby and exterior waiting area are formed as a complex but single entity that joins an economical classroom building to the existing gymnasium and stretches around the exterior as invitation and shelter, the architect says. Trophy cases that line the lobby use salvaged gymnasium flooring with its aged center court emblem as their backdrop. “The architects demonstrated good command and control of the new addition with the development of their own language,” the jurors said. “The interior connection to the existing is deftly handled.”
Photo © Eric Hudson.

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