Tenant House / Photo by Jason Benavides

March 1. By Dave Yochum. The historic tenant house tucked away on the corner of the Alexander Farm development site will be saved and moved to a new 3.2 acre park that will be located in another section of the 55-acre mixed-use project.

WIN Development plans a $100-million-plus development that gets under way as soon as next month. Based in Belleaire Beach, Fla., WIN paid a total of $9.45 million for the property which will in large part be cleared for homes and retail, including a Lidl grocery store.

The unassuming tenant house was deemed worth saving because there are so few of them remaining in what was once an agricultural county—and town.

Cornelius officials worked very closely with Mecklenburg County management, including County Manager Dena Diorio, Mecklenburg County Parks and Charlotte-Mecklenburg Landmarks.

“Together, we have identified the best site for the tenant house to be the proposed park property within the Alexander Farm Development,” said Assistant Town Manager Wayne Herron.

The tenant house is expected to be part of an exhibit on tenant farming and a nearly forgotten way of life for countless people, both black and white, decades ago.

“Once the park property comes to the Town, we will begin the process of long term planning for a passive interpretive display of the structure. This means there will be no real internal renovation. The structure will have a proper foundation, roof and be secured so citizens may look into the structure,” Herron said.

The Town worked closely with Gary Fankhauser/ViZ Consulting to plan a spot for the tenant house. Catawba runs up and down on the left