It’s Awards Nomination Time!

Both the Washington State Department of Archaeology and Historic Preservation (DAHP) and the Association of King County Historical Organizations (AKCHO) have awards nomination deadlines coming up.

DAHP is now seeking nominations for the 21st Annual Awards for Outstanding Achievements in Historic Preservation. The State Historic Preservation Officer will present the awards at a ceremony on Tuesday, May 3, 2011 in the Columbia Room in the Legislative Capitol building in Olympia. The deadline to submit nominations is March 4, 2011. Download the nomination form on DAHP’s website.

AKCHO is seeking nominations for its annual Awards Program taking place at MOHAI on Tuesday, April 26, 2011. The deadline to submit nominations is February 21, 2011. View AKCHO’s website for more info.

 

Kenmore History Uncovered

Roland Terry-designed Episcopal Church of the Redeemer / Photo: King County Historic Preservation Program

The City of Kenmore is working with the King County Historic Preservation Program to conduct a cultural resources survey.  Here’s a press release issued by the City and the King County Historic Preservation Program about the project:

Church designed by renowned Northwest architect Roland Terry, post-war houses with bomb and fallout shelters, these and more are among the historic properties to be photographed and documented in survey starting this month.

The City of Kenmore is conducting a survey of historic buildings (built prior to 1976) in January and February 2011.  King County’s Historic Preservation Program staff is conducting the survey; the City of Kenmore and King County have an interlocal agreement which authorizes the county to provide preservation services.  The project is funded by a National Park Service Grant administered by the Washington State Department of Archaeology and Historic Preservation.  Approximately 100 properties will be documented. The purpose of the project is to provide a framework to guide future planning and preservation efforts in Kenmore.  There are no regulatory implications for property owners; it is a documentation effort only.

This project updates and expands upon previous surveys of the area. Kenmore’s previously surveyed architectural heritage includes Saint Edwards Seminary and the Thomsen Estate. Saint Edwards Seminary is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and the Thomsen Estate is designated as a City of Kenmore Local Landmark.

The survey of 2011 is focusing on mid-20th century residential architecture and looking closely at houses located in areas of Kenmore developed in that era, including Uplake Terrace. Along with the Uplake Terrace properties, the scope of the survey includes taking a look at 12 houses identified through the State Department of Archaeology and Historic Preservation’s “Nifty From the Last 50” initiative that studied post-WWII architecture.  Seven properties identified in the Kenmore Heritage Society publication Kenmore by the Lake: A Community History will also be documented.

Alki Homestead: This Place Still Matters

New poster released. Want one? Contact the Log House Museum.

Sunday, January 16, 2011, marked the two-year anniversary of a fire that partially damaged the Fir Lodge/Alki Homestead building in West Seattle. Built in 1904, this designated Seattle landmark building has been vacant and closed since, deteriorating with each passing month. In February 2010, a Certificate of Approval (C of A) application for demolition of the Alki Homestead was filed with the City’s Historic Preservation Program. This was a few months after the applicant presented an informational briefing to the Architectural Review Committee of the Landmarks Preservation Board on November 13, 2009 at a public meeting (which was followed by a Board tour of the site in December 2009). The C of A application was incomplete–it’s up to the applicant to file a complete application in order for the process to move forward. The advocacy effort to save the Homestead stepped up in 2010, culminating in a photo event on July 4, when about 200 people came together in front of the Homestead building to declare,“This Place Matters.”

On this two-year anniversary of the fire, a four-organization coalition consisting of the Southwest Seattle Historical Society, Historic Seattle, 4Culture, and Washington Trust for Historic Preservation, held a press conference at the Log House Museum to update the public about some developments since last July 4, where the coalition pronounced, “This Place Still Matters.” The goal of the advocacy effort is to see the landmark Alki Homestead protected, preserved and restored (according to accepted preservation design standards), no matter who the owner is. The organizations are resources for any owner.

Save 4Culture

4Culture, the single largest source of arts and heritage funding in King County, is about to go away. In order to save 4Culture, Advocate4Culture is forming a coalition of artists, organizations, and audiences. Advocate4Culture believes  that arts and heritage is vital to our economy, quality-of-life, education and pride in our communities.

What can you do to help?
1. Join the Advocate4Culture Coalition and be counted among the effort’s supporters.
2. Learn about the issue through Advocate4Culture’s website.
3. Tell other people.
4. Be prepared to act.

By joining Advocate4Culture, you’ll be asked to help at crucial points as the coalition works to pass a bill in Olympia over the next several months. Together, we will save 4Culture!

To find out more about Advocate4Culture, attend the Great City Brownbag on Thursday, January 13.

Where: GGLO Space at the Steps, 1301 First Ave., Level A
Date: Thursday, January 13, 2011
Time: 12:00 pm to 1:30 pm
Enter through door located about 1/4 of the way down the Harbor Steps

The Value of Seattle’s Industrial Buildings

2004. Collins Building in Everett (originally North Coast Casket Company) / Photo: Washington Trust for Historic Preservation

A must-read this week is Lawrence Kreisman’s Pacific Northwest Magazine article, “Seattle’s historic industrial buildings serve and support,” published in yesterday’s Seattle Times. Mr. Kreisman focuses on the value of utilitarian structures and why they are significant to the fabric of our communities. Our industrial past is an important one. Historic preservation is not always about pretty buildings. History is all-encompassing. Often times, industrial buildings are seen as white elephants if they are longer used. But the adaptive re-use of historic properties is a creative way to put life back into structures that were built for another purpose. Entire industrial neighborhoods have been revitalized through renovation. Rather than razing these monuments to our industrial past, let’s repurpose them and celebrate them.

The poster child for what not to do is the Collins Building in Everett, shown above in 2004 and below during demolition (or what the Port of Everett euphemistically calls “deconstruction”). Historic Everett and the Washington Trust for Historic Preservation fought valiantly for years to save the old casket factory building, but lost to the Port of Everett. BTW, if you’ve got a big ol’ building and are looking for massive windows, columns and beams, the Port is salvaging the parts and offering them to qualifying entities.

 

2010. Collins Building Demolition by the Port of Everett / Photo: Historic Everett