Published on: Tue, 10/09/2007 - 09:34
Over 2,000 historic preservationists invaded Saint Paul last week for the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s National Preservation Conference.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation is a private, nonprofit membership organization dedicated to saving historic places and revitalizing America’s communities. The annual National Preservation Conference allows historic preservation professionals and enthusiasts to exchange information, ideas, inspiration and contacts.
2007 marked the first time that Minnesota, home of National Trust President Richard Moe, hosted the National Preservation Conference. While he was in town, Moe discussed preservation issues in Minnesota and across the nation on Minnesota Public Radio’s Midday Program. Click here to listen to Moe’s comments.
Preservation and Urban Verve
An editorial in the Pioneer Press titled Unlocking Value from the Past welcomed conference attendees and encouraged them to help Saint Paulites recognize the value of their historic resources:
Historic preservation is a tough concept to cling to when a city that needs development and investment and new energy – downtown St. Paul is what we’re thinking of – faces choices of the status quo vs. risky but exciting new ventures. The verve to preserve is one of many competing urges when a city looks forward.
We believe the case for preservation has to be made on the basis of its inherent and enduring value. The point isn’t to worship history, it’s to take advantage of it. We don’t want shrines to the past. We want places we can live and work and dine and socialize in.
So kick our cobbles and love our bricks, preservationists. Help us focus our attention on parts of our landscape we can’t afford to lose. Help us separate the old bricks that are just old bricks from those with important parts of our story layered into the mortar.
Garrison Keillor, the host of public radio’s A Prairie Home Companion, echoed the need for historic preservation along with renewed vitality in downtown Saint Paul during the keynote address at the opening plenary session. Click here to listen to Keillor’s address on Midday.
Historic Saint Paul Field Sessions
The board and staff of Historic Saint Paul was incredibly busy greeting visitors at our booth in the exhibit hall, attending educational sessions and hosting tours. Highlights from the Historic Saint Paul field sessions are described below:
- Restore Saint Paul
The Restore Saint Paul tour took conference attendees through the Dayton’s Bluff and Payne-Phalen neighborhoods to view loan program projects. Preservation Nation blogger Sarah Heffern was along for the tour and was impressed what she saw:
Restore Saint Paul tour participants learned about the Payne Avenue State Bank Building
…the transitions these houses are making are remarkable. With the seed funding and technical support provided by Historic Saint Paul, homeowners are removing weathered asphalt siding to reveal authentic Victorian-era carvings, stained glass, and other long-hidden detailing which transforms the look of not only the house, but the neighborhood as well. The program has also been a tool to build community relationships: one participant spoke of learning about of the grants from the sign posted in her neighbor’s yard, while another spoke of how she has been encouraging her next-door neighbor to apply.
- From Immigrants to Sports Fans: Transformations in the West Seventh Street Neighborhood
Historic Saint Paul board member Andrew Hine led a walking tour of the West Seventh Street and Uppertown Neighborhoods. Heffern commented that despite a new arena in the area, the neighborhood retained much of its historic character:
Can an Arena Save a Neighborhood?
Nothing, though, made me feel that original character had been maintained like Irvine Park. Located just a couple of blocks from the Xcel Center, it is St. Paul’s last remaining frontier neighborhoods. Threatened with demolition for “urban renewal” in the 1970s, Irvine Park and the houses that ring its perimeter were saved through the efforts of those who lived there, an act which one guide characterized as the birth of historic preservation is St. Paul.
Click here to read a complete story about the West End Tour by Andrew Hine
- Saint Paul by Bicycle
Historic Saint Paul Board member Mike Koop led a bike tour of historic sites along Summit Avenue, River Road and Minnehaha Park. Preservation Nation blogger Margaret Foster was impressed, not only with the buildings, but with Saint Paulites’ hospitality:
Biking through St. Paul History
Our first stop was a Cass Gilbert-designed mansion, and, as our group was staring at it, a friendly Midwesterner (so redundant) came out and shouted, “Do you want to come in?” But we rode on, stopping at a park with a fountain designed by the sculptor who did the Rockefeller Center Prometheus, a church-turned-theater that the city had snatched from the jaws of demolition, and two colleges, where impossibly young kids flopped in the grass, studying in the October sun.
National Trust Honor Award
The National Trust for Historic Preservation conferred a National Honor Award upon Landmark Center, the first building in Minnesota to be placed on the National Register of Historic Places. The National Preservation Awards are bestowed on distinguished individuals, nonprofit organizations, public agencies and corporations whose skill and determination have given new meaning to their communities through preservation of our architectural and cultural heritage.
“The restoration of Landmark Center is a model preservation project that transformed not only this amazing building, but also contributed to the rebirth of downtown Saint Paul,” said Richard Moe, president of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. “More than a hundred years after its construction, the Landmark Center is an inspiring example of how one building can serve as a catalyst for community revitalization.”
Thank You!
Thank you to everyone who attended our field sessions or dropped by our booth. We learned a great deal from your insights and experience. Historic Saint Paul enjoyed partnering with the National Trust for Historic Preservation and other local partners (notably Minnesota Landmarks and the Preservation Alliance of Minnesota) to showcase our town and our work. Special thanks to everyone who volunteered their time and/or opened their homes and businesses for the field sessions.
