All in Historic Preservation
How the Great Depression Preserved the Historic Wesley Center
I recently had the opportunity to tour the Historic Wesley Center in downtown Minneapolis. The former home of the Wesley Methodist Episcopal Church now houses 8 nonprofit groups and hosts outside events. The Historic Wesley Center nonprofit, was formed about a year ago to preserve and protect the building after its viability as a church had expired.
The Incremental Developer
I recently read an article by Robert Steuteville titled "Great Idea:Incremental Developers". The incremental developer is someone who creates meaningful change in their own communities through small scale building projects. When I thought about this for a moment, I realized I was an incremental developer when I lived in Lubbock, Texas. My husband and I purchased a rundown old bungalow, spent months renovating it through window restoration, refinishing the hardwood floors, installing dry wall on the ceilings, new central heating and air, painting, and exposing the original brick fireplace.
If You Plan It They Will Come
Minneapolis, like many other urban cities with a long history, has numerous commercial hubs scattered throughout residential districts. These hubs are the remnants of the original city function providing neighborhood grocery stores and retail businesses within walking distances of a sizable population of households. Most of these areas were located along the street car lines and often times hosted a small movie theater to provide local entertainment.
Density vs. Preservation: the never ending battle
I began my career as a preservation planning intern in Lincoln, Nebraska. While there, I mostly worked on National Register nominations and local landmark designations. Lincoln was receptive to preservation and not in the business of demolition. There was no need to pack density into the downtown core at the expense of historic buildings because there was plenty of vacant land on the edge of town to build on.