roanoke.com Real Politics / Preston Bryant

Preston Bryant is a Republican who has represented Lynchburg and part of Amherst County in the Virginia House of Delgates since 1996.

Every hundred years or so, Capitol Square should get spruced up, whether it needs it or not.

Right now, it really does need it. Pretty badly, in fact.

There are quite a number of buildings on both sides of the green iron fence that encircles the Capitol's grounds that are in need of great repair. Their general conditions are such that any proud, red-blooded Virginian would recoil in shame if granted access for basement-to-attic inspections.

But now both the executive and legislative branches are riding to rescue these buildings and restore our civic pride in them. During the 2003 General Assembly session, the House of Delegates and Senate passed the Capitol Square Preservation Act, the heart of which is the issuance of tens of millions of dollars in bonds to take care of that which has been neglected for far too long. Gov. Mark Warner signed the act into law and is now working hand-in-glove with the legislature to see Capitol Square returned to its historic glory. Bipartisanship at its best.

The most prized building in need of renovation is the Jefferson-designed Capitol itself. Its late-18th century construction is beginning to show the very signs of age one would expect, such as foundation cracks and utility problems. When the General Assembly is in session, it's not uncommon to smell sewer gases rising from the Capitol's bowels into the House chamber (no jokes, please). The inability to control humidity is having a deleterious effect on the many valuable portraits and other artworks adorning the walls. And every so often, the priceless Houdon statue of George Washington that holds sway in the Rotunda has to be cleaned of the grime that finds it way to it.

Just down the hill a bit from the Capitol -- truly, a mere stone's throw away -- is the Old Finance Building. This beautiful 1894 building was used for executive branch offices until the late 1990s, when fears for workers' safety closed it down. Uncontrollable water leaks have caused severe damage both inside and out. Parts of its exterior are roped off to protect passersby from concrete falling from its cornice. The building's interior is riddled with asbestos. And its mechanical and electrical systems are from decades long ago -- in fact, we may not have this architectural gem today if not for an attentive worker who not long ago just happened to be nearby when fire sparked from a light fixture and spread along a basement corridor.

Not far from the Old Finance Building -- just behind the Governor's Mansion -- are three Italianate townhouses that make up Morson's Row. These are the last signs of residential living around Capitol Square. It's a throwback to yesteryear to see each building's interior woodwork, not to mention the beautiful marble mantels. Today, these 1853 structures serve as offices for the Virginia Commission for the Arts as well as the Department of Conservation and Recreation. If we want to continue using them -- and indeed we do -- then we must repair their deteriorating exteriors and replace their iffy mechanical and electrical systems.

James Pleasants was a member of Congress during the War of 1812, and he was Virginia's governor in the early 1820s. With the relatively recent British aggression still fresh on most folks' minds, a bell tower was built in 1824 just a few hundred yards southwest of the Capitol. It was a guardhouse and signal tower then, but a century-and-a-half later this storied building would serve as a lieutenant governor's office. Today, despite its deteriorating brick and stone, it's operated as a visitors' center. The Bell Tower is too significant a Capitol Square fixture not to be restored.

There are other buildings, too, that will undergo major renovations, such as the Ninth Street Office Building, the Washington Building, the Supreme Court, and the Old State Library. Sadly, though, the Eighth Street Office Building will be torn down, as its century-old support structure is far beyond repair.

A lot of this work is to begin soon, especially the renovations to the Capitol. The goal is to have it all completed by the end of 2006 so that we're polished up for 2007, the year we'll be welcoming visitors from around the world to help us celebrate Virginia's quadricentennial.

Much of Virginia's history -- its good as well as its bad -- has been made in the buildings in and around Capitol Square. Preserving them is one way to ensure that we never forget any of it.

And thanks to this year's Capitol Square Preservation Act, we're going to do just that.

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