Treanor Architects

Five things you thought you knew about historic preservation

The very idea of preserving an older, historically significant building for a new, modern use can start some heated conversations. The problem is, a number of the “facts” that many believe to be true about historic preservation projects are actually false.

Here are five of the most common beliefs about historic preservation and rehabilitation— and the reality:

It’s just for 80-year-old buildings.Actually, age is just a starting point. The National Park Service says any building that is 50 years old and historically significant based on its usage, its role in the community or its unique architectural features could be a candidate for designation and preservation. Don’t be so quick to write off that mid-century blond brick, either. Increasingly, postwar buildings are being recognized as defining the character of their communities, says Mark Miles, Director and Deputy State Historic Preservation Officer at the Missouri State Historic Preservation Office. The most vulnerable time for a building, he says, is when it’s getting old, but has not yet achieved the patina of age and significance that traditionally appeals to preservationists. “However, just because your building is old doesn’t mean it’s historically important,” notes Carol Ann Robb, Librarian at Pittsburg Public Library (Pittsburg, Kansas), a 1912 Carnegie Library renovated in the late 1990s. “You need to talk to an expert who will be honest with you about its value.”

It’s too expensive.Actually, depending on tax credits and incentives available for your project, it may not only be affordable, it may be cheaper, says Rick Kready, Vice President of Operations for Pioneer Group, Inc. (Topeka, KS), a development company focusing on historic preservation and redeveloping neighborhoods. Kready, a self-described “numbers guy,” says you must be realistic in evaluating the condition of a building and know what financial tools are available. You may spend more to research and preserve historically accurate features, but leveraging the investment already made in time and materials can allow more money to be spent on upgrades, furnishings or equipment. “If you’re going to spend a quarter of a million to tear down a building so that you can build a new one, that’s one expensive lot,” says Kready. “Why spend money to build walls when you already have them?”

We can’t change anything.“Many people have misconceptions about how much protection a National Register listing provides,” says Miles. “They think that if the government has recognized a property, they will be unable to alter it, or that a future owner will be restricted. Yet most preservation ordinances do allow changes to take place.” Kready, whose company has turned old schools into senior housing and a Civil War-era Veteran’s Administration campus into a modern office park, agrees. Most historic preservation projects, he says, are a balance between evaluating what’s needed to make a building serve its new purpose and identifying and preserving its most historically significant elements. While these projects must often go through local and national review processes, the standards to which historic buildings are held are more flexible than many people believe.  For instance, an addition may be removed if it does not contribute to the building’s significance. “There is negotiating room,” says Kready.

It won’t be energy efficient.Green building efforts often focus on energy. However, the reuse and recycling of older buildings – with modern mechanical systems built into them – is not just energy efficient, it’s a more sustainable practice. Take, for example, Pioneer Presidents Place, an effort that turned two unused historic schools in Salina, Kansas, into 61 senior housing units. Designed using sustainable design principles established by the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) program, it was the first LEED-certified project in Kansas. Yet, the myth of tradeoffs in energy efficiency remains prevalent even within the building industry. Even professional energy auditors may believe, for example, that exterior storm windows cannot be installed on a historic building. In fact, restored historic windows with storm windows are often used in preservation projects to provide an energy efficient solution.

Anybody can do it.Preserving and rehabilitating a building requires a specialized set of skills. “It’s an involved process,” says Robb, who managed her library’s renovation. “You have to go back and study your history – old photos, documents, and blueprints. I didn’t realize how involved the architects were in every detail, from the HVAC to where telephone lines were going to run.” Miles advises working with architects and contractors who specialize in historic preservation, experts whose knowledge can save money, time and resources— and whose approach is aligned with your goals. “Some people believe it’s best to rip everything out and start from scratch, and may impose their mindset on the property. A good preservation architect is going to be sympathetic to a building’s history,” he says. “You’ll never have more original elements in place than when you start the project. If at the end, there’s nothing left that’s historic, you haven’t accomplished much.”

Have a preservation myth you’d like to add? Let us know at vkelley@treanorarchitects.com.