A Look at Laguna Honda: Loyalty to the Past and Openness to Change
Since 1867, Laguna Honda Hospital and Rehabilitation Center has embodied San Francisco’s pledge to care for its elderly and disabled, “Obamacare before Obamacare”, as one staff member put it. Since a major reconfiguration completed in December 2010, dust has settled...
Historic California Live Music Venues – Absolute Treasures
The first concert I ever attended was in October of 1983 at the Greek Theatre in Berkeley (est. 1903). The band headlining the historic venue that night was 80s juggernaut, Men at Work, from Australia. I must have been one of the youngest attendees there...
The Survivors: The Last of the Great San Francisco Movie Theaters
Growing up in the Sunset district at a time when VCRs and basic cable were still very much a household rarity, I would not have to travel very far to enter the magical world of cinema on the big screen. As a kid--and still today--the experience holds a certain rare...
East Brother Light Station
Across the northwest shores of Richmond, near historic Winehaven and the Point Molate Naval Fuel Depot sits National Register #71000138, the East Brother Light Station.
How “True” is New Mexico True: A New, Old Architectural Style – Part II
Shortly after New Mexico became the 47th state, Santa Fe residents, city officials, architects, and artists, all agreed to promote a uniform style that would not only link the city with a romantic architectural image, but...
How “True” is New Mexico True: Popular Visions of New Mexico’s Past Part I
Observations from Santa Fe The following opinion is based on observations during a two-month summer stay in Santa Fe, New Mexico as a trades intern with the Historic Santa Fe Foundation. The observations were made while restoring historic features and...
Napa Earthquake from the Sky
Below is a collection of aerial clips showing earthquake damage to historic following the American Canyon seismic event on August 24, 2014. The film was “intended for educational purposes, to show builders and building owners across the world the results of this...
The Politics of Preservation: Who Decides the Relevancy of Resources?
Recognizing the need to protect historic and pre-historic resources in the United States began with the Antiquities Act, approved by President T. Roosevelt in June 8, 1906. The act gave President Roosevelt and all other presidents after him, the discretionary right to...
Last-Ditch Efforts to Save Miami’s Historic Art Deco District
Historic Beginnings The Miami Design Preservation League, founded in 1976, faced an uphill battle to save the modest buildings of Miami’s south end (on land once used for coconut farming) because they were not only different from the elaborate luxury hotels and...
The City of Shibam: Conservation Beyond “Preservation”
When conservation goes beyond preserving the external appearance of historic structures and meets the local needs of the population, it becomes environmentally, economically, and culturally sustainable. Sustainability breathes new life into decaying, yet...