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Politics & Government

Planning to Preserve the Past

The DC Historic Preservation Office asks community members for their input.

Tuesday evening several concerned community members met at Sumner School to discuss the formulation of the new D.C. Historic Preservation Plan.

“This is not just a plan for our office,” said DC State Preservation Officer David Maloney. “The public has to be involved.”

The public is involved, and enthusiastically so. The meeting drew a large and diverse group, including District residents, preservation organization representatives and DC Historic Preservation Office (HPO) staff.

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The Historic Preservation Plan is re-conceived approximately every five years. A preservation plan has to be in place for the HPO to maintain federal funding. HPO staff hope to create a plan that cultivates sustained dialogue regarding preservation within the District community.

“You open it up to the public so you can get all of the ideas, all of the input,” said Catherine Buell, Chair of the Historic Preservation Review Board. “It’s good for residents and activists to be able to say ‘we’re on the same page'.”

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Preservation enthusiasts from across the city were able to do just that. The meeting attendees were asked to break into small groups and identify components of HPO day-to-day operations and programming that are currently effective. They were also asked to discuss potential areas for improvement.

The attendees noted that while the HPO excels at cultivating cultural toursim through undertakings such as walking tours and cultural heritage markers, district residents are less aware of the historic integrity of their city.

Although many community members appreciate the value of historic preservation, the general consensus was that residents should be better educated about the specifics of preservation in the DC area.

Attendees suggested a wide range of potential initiatives to address this issue, including youth education programming, localized education and geographically expanding community outreach. Attendees also proposed improving publicity by offering more print materials and utilizing community listservs.

Other suggested improvements included offering financial incentives to preserve the historic integrity of structures, implementing anti-demolition regulations and the creation of a historic preservation trade program to create jobs and improve preservation.

Meeting attendees also noted that the neglect of historic landscapes is currently a serious problem in the local preservation community, as is the troubling misperception that the HPO review process is an impediment.

It seems the HPO staff members have their work laid out for them as they move forward in formulating the next D.C. Historic Preservation Plan.

“I think they’re going to have to figure out how to do more with less and that’s going to involve a lot of strong partnerships,” said Erik Hein, a representative for the Committee of 100 on the Federal City.

Fortunately, if Tuesday’s turnout is any indication, many local organizations are ready and willing to offer their support and feedback as the HPO continues to develop a new preservation plan.

A draft of the plan will be available to the public in late October.

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