Historic Preservation
Would you believe me if I told you that your historic district was the greenest place in town?
You could rightly say that historic preservation is the “original green!” Some of the freshest thoughts in architecture and development today is that historic properties have a lot of intrinsic value.
Beyond physical history that we can all experience and touch, historic buildings are hallmarks of resilience and adaptability. They were built to last from quality materials. Along with other existing buildings, caring for them plays a large part in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. They are also really cool.
We will take a journey across what happens in your town’s historic Main Street districts and historic residential neighborhoods. We will look at the process of renewing and revitalizing these places through the art of combining historic preservation with the best building science and new neighborhood redevelopment practices.
Pairing yesterday’s traditions, renewable materials, and solid bones with today’s best ideas and technology is a sure way to have the greenest building in town.
Historic District Revitalization
Main Street America™
Historic District Redevelopment
Adaptive Reuse
Mixed-use Development
Infill Development
Placemaking & Downtown Design
Placemaking is the art of putting people back together, and downtown is the best opportunity to develop new placemaking projects.
According to the Project for Public Spaces - the pioneers of this approach - Placemaking is “the art and science of developing public spaces that attract people, build community by bringing people together, and create local identity.”
Downtown placemaking can be led by the local Main Street group, other civic groups, individuals, or even the City. Good placemaking adds community profit and increases the vitality of the downtown.
For a community to truly reach its potential, it is essential to have a revitalized Main Street and historic district.
The State of Oklahoma is fortunate to have a unique placemaking team based out of the University of Oklahoma’s College of Architecture. Although still newly formed, the Institute for Quality Communities, has an impressive body of work under their belt.
Green Preservation
Historic preservation is inherently green, and it can be even greener. Historic Preservation and high-performance green architecture are not mutually exclusive. Together you can have the greenest building in town.
Resilient Design & Inherent Energy Efficiency
Energy Efficiency Retrofits
Renewable Energy
Green Heart Town
Note: Please leave questions and comments in the space after each post. I look forward to the conversation!
If you have an ideas for a post, I would love to hear them! Send a message from the Contact Page.
Finding you in that room changed my life and stirred my soul. You had been waiting a long time, when the librarian showed me back to a large public meeting room and opened the door. There were some large colorized prints of the neighborhood places hanging around the room on the wall, and you were featured in one of the images. It was the coolest thing I had ever happened upon.
Does absence make the heart grow fonder? It has been over a year since writing about my new duty with Colorado Main Street and a lot happened in 2018, just not so much blog writing! I am sorry for such a lengthy break. The move to Colorado was a challenging transition for my family, and spending time acclimating and adventuring together has taken priority.
Moving is like uprooting a plant and putting it somewhere new. Our life-connections (the people and places in our daily lives) are radically altered, and we have to adjust and figure out our place again.
In late February 2018, I will begin serving as the new Colorado Main Street Architect. The Colorado Main Street Program is housed in the Department of Local Affairs (DOLA), Division of Local Government (DLG) and rests at the absolute heart of DOLA’s goal to “Strengthen Colorado Communities.”
Having grown up in a small town in Oklahoma, improving the quality of life in rural communities is something I care about deeply. My love for rural community development really blossomed during my 6 years with the Oklahoma Main Street Program.
Since its kick-start in 2011, the Colorado Main Street Program has been providing high-quality, state-wide support to...