With money on the state budget for fiscal year 2015-2016, the fate of the old gym building near the Carter House seems set.
The gym sits decrepit on the property next to Piggly Wiggly and Carter House Historic Site off Columbia Ave. in Franklin. The repaired roof is a haven for the homeless and broken windows call for more rocks to be thrown at them. The gym has been vacant of official programed activities since 2007, when the Boys and Girls Club moved down the street to a new facility.
State Rep. Charles Sargent (R-Franklin) put in for $500,000 on the state budget for the 2015-2016 fiscal year. With the approval of that money, the next step is to put out bids for the demolition. The State of Tennessee will oversee the demolition in conjunction with the Battle of Franklin Trust.
The building used to be part of the old Franklin High School, which burned down in 1956, leaving 
only the gymnasium and a few basement classrooms unleveled. The current Franklin High School was then constructed. The Boys and Girls Club of Franklin moved into the building in 1989, and used the facility for a teen hangout center, cookouts and for gym activities.
The state of Tennessee purchased the building as part of a land swap with the Carter House Association in 1999. The plans for the building then were to turn it into a new, bigger visitor’s center for the Carter House.
“Due to community interest in adaptively reusing the gym, the project scope evolved to planning the adaptive reuse of the gym for a new visitor center, rather than updating the existing building,” said Patrick McIntyre of the Tennessee Historic Commission.
After the Boys and Girls Club moved out in 2007, the building fell into disrepair as the community effort to rehabilitate the gym fizzled.
Originally, $1.2 million in tax-payer funded state money was approved for the rehabilitation of the gymnasium. Before the Battle of Franklin Trust was formed, part of that money was used to draw up architectural plans and on repairing the roof, to the tune of around $374,000, according to an article by The Tennessean.
The Battle of Franklin Trust took over the project after the roof had been repaired and plans were already drawn up and paid for.
The thousands of tax payer dollars that went into the initial effort will be lost with the demolition of the gymnasium. As the plans were drawn to make the gym into a visitor’s center for the Carter House, it was found out that the full scope of the gym rehabilitation project would cost $3-5 million.
“In late 2007, there was a kick-off event organized by the THC and the Carter House Association to generate support to raise funds for the conversion of the building into the visitor center.” McIntyre said. “This was also the time when the “Great Recession” occurred. A meaningful fundraising campaign never materialized on the private level, and no additional funding was found at the state level. Also during this period, a new organization was founded, the Battle of Franklin Trust, that began administering the Carter House State Historic Site.”
When the community effort to reuse the gym facility was active, the Battle of Franklin Trust had not yet been formed.
McIntyre said the remaining money, around $876,000, is available for construction use, but since the project has been reimagined to tear down the gym and reclaim the battlefield on the property, no construction would be necessary for the project any longer. That money will be used for other things besides the original funding purpose.
Tearing down the gym is part of a strong effort by the Civil War Battlefield preservationists in Franklin to reclaim the entire hill on Columbia Ave. for the Carter Hill Battlefield Park.
“The [new] money will be available after July 1,” McIntyre wrote in an email. “Barring unforeseen delays, we anticipate the demolition process to be completed sometime in the 15-16 fiscal year.”
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Thanks for painting our beloved Optimist Center in such a positive light as a “haven for the homeless [whose] broken windows call for more rocks to be thrown at them.” This building is a historical marker and has brought this community together for generations. No mention whatsoever of The Optimist Center- any idea what it symbolized? Take about 5 minutes and piece it together. By the way your “article” unfolds I was surprised there was even a poll awaiting me upon completion. Between your biased “journalism” and the photos- any citizen incapable of thinking for themselves will certainly vote to demolish it. This article is an insult to the memories created in this facility. I cannot stand that someone like you has any kind of platform in this community.
Very sad. My mother, father, aunts, myself and my own children played ball in this gymnasium. Are there any native Williamson countians left?
I feel the same way. I’m native (born in 1974 here and raised here) and my family (dad, aunt, etc) have great memories from the 50’s of this building when they were growing up. So sad. Everything in Franklins past isn’t about the Civil War. It is a large part of it but there is more. I do believe in preserving battlefields, historic landmarks, etc but, this building has a historical significance of another time period. Not just the land from the civil war. Idk. It honestly just gets on my nerves.
I agree with the ladies who wrote before me. This was an extremely biased article. I wasn’t actually born here, but moved here when I was 12…40 years ago, so considered this to be my home. The Old Franklin High Gym is not considered to be historic and an important part of this community. Everything is NOT about the Civil War and battlefields although they are important. I guess the people who are working to preserve all the battlefields are just super awesome at fundraising. As I recall the old Factory had broken windows and was probably a haven for the homeless as well. I’m sure the writer of this article was just trying to paint a positive picture of what the fate of another old building which is an eyesore to those who are completely reconstructing the downtown area. I’m all for making the areas downtown beautiful and inviting, but you don’t have to tear everything down to do it. I would consider the “old Franklin High gym”…the only part of a building which burned down in the 50’s a pretty historic site. I miss the Franklin High I went to and am still saddened that it was completely removed as if it never existed. All the “new’ people who have moved into Franklin have changed it so much. Many of the things are really nice…but we have lost so much already. I’m sure something “of value” could be done with this historic building as has with so many others. Money can be found for anything which it’s wanted for. There just has to be a person or group willing to work to get it.
I saw the pictures after submitting my previous comment. If the homeless were using those mattresses, I’d imagine they would be using them inside the building. That being said, maybe it’s a “dumping” issue rather than a place for the homeless to live. I’d rather sleep on the ground than a soggy mattress.