The Governor’s Award is presented to an individual in recognition of lifetime achievements in the support of historic preservation in South Carolina.

The 2010 recipient of the Governor’s Award is principal and owner of the architectural firm, Campbell, Meek , and Associates in Spartanburg, SC who  has over 37 years architectural experience, much of it related to historic preservation, beginning with preparing color and signage guidelines for Spartanburg’s downtown National Register listed Historic District.

Since 1984, Martin Meek has filled the role as the City of Spartanburg’s Historic Preservation Architect Consultant.  Mr. Meek has served two terms on the South Carolina review board for the National Register of Historic Places.  He has a close, practical knowledge of implementation of “The Secretary of the Interior’s Standard’s for the Treatment of Historic Properties” and “The Historic American Building Survey Standards for Architectural Documentation of Historic Structures.”  Mr. Meek has been involved with a plethora of restoration and preservation projects from the mountains to the coast of South Carolina during his distinguished career. 

Mr. Meek was project architect for the Freemont School in Spartanburg which received a 2003 Honor Award from the South Carolina State Historic Preservation Office, and an award for Architectural design from the City of Spartanburg.  Martin Meek has been involved in many projects that put apartments in “white elephant buildings” …just a few examples are:
Highland Mill in Rock Hill, SC.
Arcadia Mill in Spartanburg
Monaghon Mill in Greenville
And the Dodd’s Building in Darlington
 
The Spartanburg Train Station had burned and was headed for demolition.  After awareness was raised by a local teenager, Martin was selected as project architect.  Completed in 2000, The City awarded Mr. Meek the Excellence in Design Award for Magnolia Street Depot.

Martin was selected by a Charleston developer as project architect for the  rehabilitation for the twelve-story Poinsett Hotel (1925) in Greenville, SC. , what Mr. Meek refers to as “the project of a lifetime.”  The renovation was completed and opened with a huge ball in October 2000.  In 2005, the project was recognized by the South Carolina State Historic Preservation Office with an Honor Award.

Restoration of Mountain Shoals Plantation (c. 1838) is an ongoing labor of love for Mr. Meek.  He purchased the property for his home in 1972 and with close friend Frank Coleman has been carefully restoring the extensive country residence and its nineteenth-century garden to their original condition.  Mountain Shoals Plantation is significant for its architecture, original garden and faux stone and grained woodwork that Martin personally researched and replicated. Its restoration has been used as an educational tool by many local educational institutions.

Martin Meek is a great asset to the City of Spartanburg, SC and the state of South Carolina.  His love for history and the ability to always be ready to learn more about our city and state make him a deserving recipient of the 2010 Governor’s Award.  His projects continue to earn local and state awards and his attention to preservation principles are the reason.  He can always look at a building and find some use for it and enjoy every minute of the challenge some of them afford him.  Just to put into context of Martin’s effect on restoration and historical rehab in the state, he alone has been involved in 25 projects that culminate in over 29 million dollars worth of development …and that’s just those that were tax credit projects.

For his long, distinguished career of outstanding contributions toward preservation of cultural resources and leadership in the Preservation Movement within the state of South Carolina , we are honored to bestow the Governors Lifetime Achievement award for Historical Preservation to
Mr Martin Meek.

Click on this link to see an article on Martin Meek: GoUpstate.com