Forum Blog - Preservation Leadership Forum - A Program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation

Remembering Cathy Galbraith

By Barbara Pahl posted 2 days ago

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The preservation community recently lost one of our best with the passing of Cathy Galbraith in Portland, Oregon. I only met Cathy a few times, but her reputation as a leader and a fighter transcended her work in Oregon—she was a source of inspiration to preservation leaders everywhere, including me. Cathy Galbraith at the Architectural Heritage Center | Credit: Lincoln Barbour Perhaps best known as the founding director of the Bosco-Milligan Foundation , Cathy grew it from ...

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Space, Storytelling, and Interpretive Soundscapes in Industrial South Africa

By Sarah Rovang posted 3 days ago

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Over the next year the Forum Blog will be presenting a series of posts by Sarah Rovang, the 2017 recipient of the H. Allen Brooks Travelling Fellowship from the Society of Architectural Historians. The fellowship allows its recipients—recent graduates with advanced degrees or emerging scholars—to study by travel for one year, providing them with opportunities to see and experience architecture and landscapes firsthand; think about their profession deeply; and acquire knowledge that will be useful ...

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Building Partnerships Along Route 66

By Forum Online posted 5 days ago

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The most enduring highway in our public consciousness, Route 66 represents a chapter in our history that continues to define the nation’s identity: the rise of the automobile and its implications of freedom, mobility, and a quintessential American story. From July 2 to August 3, 2018, National Trust for Historic Preservation staff Diana Tisue, Grant Stevens, and Jason Clement traveled from Chicago to Los Angeles with a handful of roadies, uncovering new stories and meeting the ...

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Members of Congress Stand Up for Bear Ears

By Barbara Pahl posted 9 days ago

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The National Trust for Historic Preservation’s legal defense of the Bears Ears National Monument took another step forward last month when a variety of stakeholders filed briefs in support of the monument designation. The lawsuit contends that the Trump administration exceeded its authority under the Antiquities Act when it reduced the size of the 1.35 million–acre Bears Ears National Monument in San Juan County, Utah, by 85 percent. The National Trust and our coplaintiffs forcefully argued that ...

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Opportunity Zones Come Into Focus

By Anthony Veerkamp posted 12 days ago

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By now, you’ve probably heard about Opportunity Zones, but you may still not be sure whether to be excited, alarmed, or indifferent regarding their implications for your community. That’s no surprise—depending on whom you ask, Opportunity Zones constitute either the most significant federal community development incentive in a generation or one of the biggest tax giveaways to the rich in American history. Preservationists and community advocates have reason to be wary of visionary big fixes for ...

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Historic Leasing: An Innovative Approach to Preservation in our National Parks

By Christine Luthy posted 13 days ago

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From iconic natural landscapes like California’s Yosemite National Park to defining historic sites like Pennsylvania’s Independence Hall, national parks showcase our most significant cultural, historic, scenic, and scientific resources. Since 1916 the National Park Service (NPS) has been responsible for stewarding spectacular places that represent our shared American identity. However, after decades of inconsistent federal and public funding, the NPS now faces a maintenance backlog of approximately ...

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Code Versus Compatibility: Striking the Right Balance at Many Glacier Hotel

By Elizabeth Hallas posted 17 days ago

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What do we do when an iconic, character-defining feature of a National Historic Landmark is lost? Our firm asked this question at the outset of our design work for the rehabilitation of Many Glacier Hotel in Glacier National Park. Built in 1916, the hotel originally featured a unique “double-helical” staircase in the center of its five-story atrium space. By the mid-1950s, the stair was gone. Legend has it that it was removed to make way for an expanded gift shop, dragged out onto the ice of Swiftcurrent ...

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Minimalist Glass Insertions to Improve and Preserve St. Patrick’s Cathedral

By Special Contributor posted 20 days ago

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By Jeffrey Murphy With its towering twin spires in the heart of Manhattan and nearly 5 million visitors per year, St. Patrick’s Cathedral is among the world’s most iconic worship spaces. The cathedral, now a National Historic Landmark, was originally occupied in 1879 and last comprehensively restored in 1946. A recent thorough restoration focused on stabilizing the structure and providing a better experience for clergy, visitors, and worshipers—all while preserving the character of this sacred ...

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Preparing for the Future: A Quick Summary of PastForward 2018

By Priya Chhaya posted 26 days ago

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"What is in our jurisdiction, and what is not? When do we choose to act, and what do we choose to ignore?” —Terry Tempest Williams, Culture-Nature TrustLive "Climate change is, at its core, a story about losing the places and cultures that make us who we are. America’s tangible and intangible heritage assets are in danger.” —Victoria Herrmann, Resilience TrustLive PastFroward 2018 attendees mingle during the Preservation Leader and Chafee Award Reception at the San Francisco Ferry building. ...

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Remarks by Jay Turnbull, 2018 Recipient of the Louise du Pont Crowninshield Award

By Special Contributor posted 30 days ago

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_ Thanks to Stephanie [Meeks] and the [National Trust for Historic Preservation Board of] Trustees. I am overwhelmed—[I] can’t believe this honor has come to me. This award is really for all who made the buildings, spaces, or landscapes [that] my colleagues and I in the world of preservation have had a chance to conserve. Thanks to my wife, Anne, and to my sons, Gordon and Davis, for being there over about 40 years! And to successive directors and staff at San Francisco Heritage, ...

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Remarks by Stephanie K. Meeks at PastForward 2018

By Stephanie Meeks posted 11-15-2018

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Hello, everyone! Thank you all for joining us for Pa stForward 2018. It’s a pleasure to be with you this week and to be here in one of America’s most beautiful cities. As local writer Herb Caen once said, “One day if I go to heaven, I’ll look around and say, ‘It ain’t bad, but it ain’t San Francisco.’” Here in this historic, thriving, diverse, and forward-looking city—so full of opportunity and creativity, so rich with possibilities and challenges—we come together again to craft the ...

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The 2018 National Preservation Awards

By Forum Online posted 11-14-2018

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The 2018 National Preservation Awards are being presented this week at PastForward 2018 in San Francisco. The awards honor inspirational projects, individuals, and organizations that have demonstrated excellence in the field of preservation. Richard H. Driehaus Foundation National Preservation Award The Richard H. Driehaus Foundation National Preservation Awards , the nation’s most coveted and prestigious, are bestowed on historic preservation efforts that demonstrate excellence in execution ...

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A New Advocacy Tool for Establishing or Improving State Historic Tax Credits

By Special Contributor posted 11-13-2018

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By Renee Kuhlman and Shaw Sprague Is your community considering policy changes to its state historic tax credit (HTC)? The National Trust for Historic Preservation has developed a best practices guide for preservation advocates and lawmakers interested in establishing or improving their state HTC incentives . State HTCs can increase building reuse, revitalize areas of disinvestment, and drive innovative approaches to addressing state policy priorities. While the preservation community rightfully ...

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2018 PastForward Virtual Attendance and Social Media Details

By Colleen Danz posted 11-11-2018

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By Colleen Danz PastForward 2018 kicks off here in San Francisco this week! Preservationists from all over the country—and even some of our international colleagues—will come together to learn, mingle, and immerse themselves in all that this amazing city has to offer. Can't attend in person? You can still be a part of the conversation. While we want everyone to be able to participate in all the programming, networking events, and unique experiences in San Francisco, we also want to provide ...

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On the Hill: A Legislative Agenda in a New Congress

By Tom Cassidy posted 11-08-2018

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To receive regular updates from the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s government relations team, sign up for our new monthly newsletter. Certainly, the most consequential change resulting from Tuesday’s election is the change in leadership of the House of Representatives from the Republican to the Democratic party. The Senate Republican majority has become larger, solidifying the ability of majority leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and the president to push forward their agenda. ...

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Excavating History: A Conversation with Bill Watanabe and Marjorie Akin

By Special Contributor posted 11-07-2018

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By Amy Guay While organizations like Asian and Pacific Islander Americans in Historic Preservation take on the challenge of representing the preservation needs of a diverse and sprawling Asian and Pacific Islander American (APIA) community, other APIA-related groups have a more narrow focus. The Little Tokyo Historical Society (LTHS) and Save Our Chinatown Committee (SOCC) are two California-based groups seeking to preserve specific places significant to Asian America. In 1990 the Riverside ...

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Annual Report Details Economic Benefits of the Historic Tax Credit

By Shaw Sprague posted 11-06-2018

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For the past five years, the preservation community has benefitted from a partnership between the National Park Service’s (NPS) Technical Preservation Services and Rutgers University’s Center for Urban Policy Research. Through this partnership, the NPS has produced the “ Annual Report on the Economic Impact of the Federal Historic Tax Credit ,” which highlights the economic benefits of the federal historic tax credit (HTC). This report differs from NPS’ annual HTC statistical report because ...

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Remembering Dr. William J. Murtagh: Keeper of the Register, Preservation Pioneer

By David Brown posted 11-02-2018

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Bill Murtagh, who passed away on October 28 at age 95, was among the most visible and effective preservation leaders in the middle of the 20th century, when the movement was expanding its focus from historic sites, museums, and teaching to the emphasis on people and community that we recognize today. To those of us who came to preservation in the 1970s and ’80s, Bill was seemingly in the middle of everything. He served two stints at the National Trust for Historic Preservation, first as President ...

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PastForward Preview: Victoria Herrmann, President and Managing Director of the Arctic Institute

By Forum Online posted 10-31-2018

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Victoria Herrmann, Ph.D., is the president and managing director of The Arctic Institute , a nonprofit dedicated to Arctic security research. She is also a National Geographic Explorer and recently led America's Eroding Edges , a research and storytelling project on coastal climate change adaptation and cultural heritage in the United States and U.S. territories. With the support of a J.M.K. Innovation Prize , she is now creating a skills-based volunteering platform to connect under-resourced ...

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A New Tool for Exploring America's Historic Post Offices

By Brian Turner posted 10-29-2018

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The National Trust for Historic Preservation is pleased to announce the publication of a digital tool that shares stories of how America’s post offices have been adapted for community-serving uses. “SOLD: America's Historic Post Offices” is a GIS-enabled story map that documents 20 historic post office buildings from coast to coast that have been offered for sale. Buildings are categorized across five themes: whether they have retained postal services after transfer, were transferred with deed restrictions, ...

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