Nina Simone home restoration  

 

TRYON—On Wednesday May 15, representatives of the National Trust for Historic Preservation along with the founder/director of the Nina Simone Project, Crys Armbrust, held a public tour of the Nina Simone home. The tour was followed by a public reception at the Nina Simone Plaza in downtown Tryon. 

Google Earth went to the childhood home of Nina Simone earlier in the day to use their equipment to scan the inside of the home and add it to their virtual tour database. 

Adam Pendleton, one of the co-owners of the Nina Simone childhood home, was in attendance for tour and reception. Local musician Daryle Ryce provided the entertainment at the reception. Ryce is a Spartanburg, South Carolina native that has performed across the country and worked for many years in Charlotte, North Carolina playing in the club circuit.  

The Nina Simone childhood home has officially finished phase one which focused on replacing and repainting the wood siding and exterior. The National Trust HOPE Crew also cleaned the inside of the home and removed leftover furniture and other miscellaneous items left by former tenants. The next phase of the project will be to have the roof assessed and repaired. The HOPE Crew used the same or similar materials to restore the siding of the home to preserve its historical accuracy. It is anticipated that they will approach the roof with the same focus on preservation of the authenticity.  

The reception was held at the Nina Simone Plaza in downtown, a fitting venue for the guests that travelled from out of town to attend. Many of the guests travelled from the nearby community, there were a few that travelled a long distance to attend. Pendleton travelled from New York to attend the event. One visitor claimed she travelled from Rhode Island just to take the tour of the Nina Simone home and see the work of the HOPE Crew.  

The National Trust and owners of the Nina Simone childhood home have not decided on what the building will be used for once it is completed. The HOPE Crew will not renovate the interior space until they have made a decision on how to use the space. One of the leading concepts is to convert the space into a place for artists and musicians to use as a retreat. 

By Samuel Robinson 

Sam.robinson@tryondailybulletin.com