05/28/2026
Historic preservation is not about freezing places in time. In fact, a key principle of preservation is rehabilitation — adapting historic buildings for new uses in a way that respects their past while ensuring they remain useful for the future.
Spaces like the Lexington Farmers Market and Grimes School are examples of how historic buildings can be thoughtfully reused to serve today’s community.
Built in 1930 after a fire destroyed the original depot, the Southern Railway brick freight station is now home to the Lexington Farmers Market. Its bay steel roll-up doors, once used for freight and industrial shipping, now support a different kind of local “manufacturing”— fresh food, local goods, and community connection.
Grimes School, which opened in 1936, was designed with then-modern school construction ideas, including an inverted “T” shape that allowed for large, light-filled classrooms. That thoughtful design supported its later adaptive reuse as apartments, where its residents now enjoy bright living spaces and access to the adjacent park, once part of the school’s original grounds.
This balance of preservation and progress is what keeps our historic places meaningful, active, and connected to everyday life.
