Sir Walter Raleigh Awards for Community Appearance

2021 Award Winners

The City of Raleigh Appearance Commission hosted its 39th annual Sir Walter Raleigh Awards for Community Appearance on April 13, 2022. Join us in celebrating the 2021 award winners!

2021 Sir Walter Raleigh Award Winners:

Commercial:
• Trophy Brewing and Pizza

Community Impact:
• Bailey Drive Gateway at Walnut Creek Wetland Park
• Gretchen Sedaris

Educational:
• Poe Center for Health Education

Landscape Design:
• Bloc(83) Tower 2
• Fitts-Woolard Hall

Public Facilities:
• Steve Troxler Agricultural Sciences Center

Public Spaces:
• John Chavis Memorial Park

Rehabilitation / Historic Preservation:
• Heights House (Montfort Hall)

Residential:
• The Saint

The Jury’s Choice Award:
• John Chavis Memorial Park

About the Awards

The Sir Walter Raleigh Awards for Community Appearance recognize outstanding new contributions to the character, environment, and appearance of the City of Raleigh. Since 1983, the Raleigh City Council has presented more than 200 Sir Walter Raleigh Awards to developers, designers, building owners, community groups, civic clubs, churches, and citizens.

2022 Award Categories

Residential

Awards for this category are given for new residential development, conversion to residential use, or improvement made to existing residential areas. The entry may be for either multi-family developments or single-family developments of multiple buildings.

Commercial

Awards in this category are presented for all types of new retail, office construction, or adaptive use and may include industrial, warehouse, or corporate projects that have a positive impact on the city's visual environment.

Rehabilitation/Historic Preservation

Awards in this category are given for preservation or rehabilitation of existing buildings, especially Raleigh's historic resources.

Public Facilities

Awards in this category are for local, state, and federal projects including office, and transportation-related facilities.

Public Spaces

Awards in this category are given for projects which enhance the appearance and livability of public areas of the City, including parks, streets, neighborhoods, and churches.

Landscape Design

Awards in this category are for projects that exemplify an integrated approach to resource conservation, respect for existing features of the site, and/or significantly preserve Raleigh's natural features and trees, including exemplary design of utilitarian site elements transformed into public amenities.

Community Impact

Awards in this category are given for groups or individuals who have created and implemented projects of any scale that enrich the quality of life in Raleigh through design.

Educational

Awards in this category are for education-related facilities at any level of instruction, including pre-school, elementary, middle, high school, college, or continuing education.

Awards are made based on project merit, as determined by the selection criteria. Awards are not necessarily made in every category, nor are there a predetermined number of awards in a category in any given year.

Selection Criteria

Entries are evaluated by the awards jury using the following general criteria:

Exhibition of a new standard of excellence, thereby providing an example for the future.
Demonstration of awareness of the importance of good stewardship of the land.
Demonstration of community involvement and innovation.
Preservation or restoration of existing topography, trees, and other natural features.
Significant improvement of an existing site or structure, and/ or preservation of important historic or cultural features.
Provision of attractive and safe conditions that meet and exceed requirements of applicable ordinances, policies, conservation areas, and designated historic districts and properties.
Integration of sustainable building principles, architecture expressive of how the project's green features function, and thoughtful conservation/ enhancement of existing features of the site and the surrounding community.