MyHometownOhio features occasional views written by Preservation Ohio Staff and Board members.  In today’s post, Preservation Ohio Executive Director Thomas Palmer takes the opportunity to pen a quick response to an editorial published in the March 11 online edition of the Marietta Register.

Some weeks ago, we took a brief timeout from Ohio-based stories to share with you a news item from the town of Albion, New York.  There, the mayor had launched into an attack on the city’s historic preservation ordinance, vociferously advocating removal of the community’s entire historic downtown area.  In a follow-up to this outburst, preservation developer Donovan Rypkema had shared his take on why the mayor’s views were not only misguided, but also objectively impractical.

MyHometownOhio included the Albion story as it typified a similar attitude we have heard in various parts of our own state – one which not only discounts the value of historic resources, but decries their existence as a purported barrier to “progress.”  In this light, this morning I was not surprised, but was nevertheless very disappointed, to read a lead editorial in the online Marietta Register entitled “Prisoners to History.”

“Prisoners to History” is an editorial that, quite frankly, needs to be read to be believed (click here to do so).  Ignoring obvious statements of exaggeration such as “One, (sic) hundred year old home or business building or government center is nice.  Ten shows a connection to the past.  A hundred or more of them shows a lack of investment in renewal and development.” or the equally broad “Those who value and are interested in history and the past tend largely to be those who are older and more set in their ways.  Those of us who are younger and more vital (let’s face it) are more interested in the newest and latest,” the core message of the editorial seems to be this – that Marietta is doomed to economic decline if it fails to jettison using its history as a tool for marketing and development.

There are many ways to respond to this editorial, among which are the following:

•    While the editorial’s point that differentiation drives economic prosperity is a valid one, it does not follow that Marietta’s use of its history cannot itself be a differentiating factor.  First of all, the history of Ohio’s oldest community is a highly unique and singular one.  Marietta is not just any community along any river.  Second, just because every city has a history, it does not automatically mean that city leaders know what that history is and how to effectively communicate it.  Like other heritage tourism attractions, cities can attract visitors and investment if they project the air of authenticity so valued in today’s marketplace, and do so in a highly interactive, engaging manner.

•    Just as with the mayor of Albion’s statements, there is an inherent impracticality to what is suggested by this editorial.  The fact is that Marietta is composed of more than hundreds of older structures – there are actually thousands of them, some 2,295 of them deemed to be contributing structures in National Register Historic Districts alone!  While replacing them is obviously a ludicrous proposition, even ignoring them to concentrate on other efforts risks the need to expend millions of public dollars dealing with the after-effects of blight and decay – a horrific proposition even in the best of economic times.

•    Like it or not, Marietta Register, the only proven viable and comprehensive downtown revitalization strategy that exists for your community is one which emphasizes assets which it already has.  After visiting hundreds of downtowns, Donovan Rypkema again stated, “….I cannot identify a single example of a sustained success story in downtown revitalization where historic preservation wasn’t a key component of that strategy. Not a one. Conversely, the examples of very expensive failures in downtown revitalization have nearly all had the destruction of historic buildings as a major element.”

•    Lastly, the State of Ohio, in the middle of the most difficult economy in a generation, still sees the inherent power of the past to generate sustainable investment.  Why else would the Ohio Historic Preservation Tax Credit be one of the key elements of Governor Strickland’s job creation strategy?

The most telling observation is this.  In both Albion and Marietta, there are no alternative economic development philosophies being advanced – there is only opposition to one which already exists.  Perhaps the author of this editorial secretly wishes that Marietta looked more like a more temperate city in California or Arizona, and feels trapped in a place that falls short of his or her expectations – but the fact is that Marietta looks like it does because of more than 200 years of history.  Perhaps it’s a simple instance of someone or someplace with resources taking them for granted, based on the human tendency to overlook what we see most often.

Whatever that case, Marietta -- Ohio’s oldest community – deserves the tools it needs to generate revitalization in the toughest of times – including, finally, a historic preservation ordinance!

Thomas Palmer

Photo: Downtown Marietta - Preservation Ohio File Photo

MyHometownOhio will be taking a look over the coming weeks at some of the people involved in Ohio's statewide preservation movement.  Today our new Project Manager, Rachel Mendell, shares a conversation with Preservation Ohio's Director of Development, Marian Vance.

Marian Vance has been involved with the work of Preservation Ohio for many years.

“I admire the work of the organization,” she said, “which has done so much through the years – during a time it was all volunteer driven.” Marian admires the work and vision of past presidents.

“We look hard at every old building that comes down,” said Marian. She sited the example of the string of working class homes nestled in behind the Frank Lloyd Wright home in Springfield. These 1800s homes “really speak of how the neighborhood looked before the Frank Lloyd Wright home was built.” The homes are a snapshot of the era, and Preservation Ohio would like to see them saved.  

At the time Marian became involved, president Ann Antenen was instrumental in saving the Anthony Wayne Hotel in Hamilton, Ohio, now a senior citizens living facility. The hotel was donated to Preservation Ohio, which was able to find a developer to restore the historic building.

“I like the educational programming that Preservation Ohio has always been involved in,” said Marian. She mentioned two of her favorite programs the organization has put on: “Courthouse Revisited” and “Managing Change.” Many of these conferences have resulted in new preservation groups around Ohio that are still meeting today.

Recently, Preservation Ohio was able to salvage architectural details from homes that were scheduled to be demolished for the new hospital that is to be built downtown Springfield. The salvage is now being sold through the ReStore, which is run by Habitat for Humanity. The historic neighborhood, 144 buildings in all, was branded for demolition when Community Mercy Health Center decided to build.

Preservation Ohio was able to negotiate a contract with the city of Springfield and a group from Preservation Ohio was allowed to go into the historic homes and salvage pieces of historic value – pillars, windows, mantle pieces, doors, and trim.

“I also served on the City of Delaware’s Historic Landmarks Commission,” said Marian. “Dublin was really the first I had had a chance to work for the creative reuse of old buildings.”

Marian helped raise money to build the church in Ohio Village and served on the board of the Ohio Historical Society for nine years. She was also president for the historic preservation group Columbus Landmarks Foundation that served as an advocacy group to save the Masonic Temple on Third Street and three historic homes on Broad Street in Columbus.

“My husband and I restored an old home in Springfield three years ago,” said Marian, “at the same time that Preservation Ohio moved its offices there.”

Marian is excited about the New Year for Preservation Ohio. “I’d like to see the educational workshops put on across Ohio,” said Marian. “I’d like to get back to the educational focus that is the root of Preservation Ohio.”

“I’d like to see us raise enough money to help small communities with the revitalization of their downtown areas.”

“The board is really strong right now,” she said. “I think this will be an exciting year for Preservation Ohio.”

-- Rachel Mendell, Project Manager

Photo: Preservation Ohio's Marian Vance, right with Board Member Cyndie Gerken - taken at the ReStore in Springfield, January 2008

The planned changes here at MyHometownOhio are more than cosmetic.  As time progresses, we plan to bring a more relaxed and conversational approach to sharing news about the world of preservation, revitalization, heritage tourism and smart growth in Ohio.  In the two and a half years that we have been blogging, for instance, we have only infrequently mentioned any background information about the Preservation Ohio office -- who we are, what we do, and -- most importantly -- where we see Ohio preservation going.  From politics to pop culture, the Buckeye State is a unique beast, and we’re going to take the chance to share our take on what makes it tick.

We are launching, therefore, a regular feature called “Perspectives on Preservation.”  These segments will include everything from coverage of preservation events around Ohio to a “look behind the scenes” at our office, statewide events, and significant local issues.  We’ll make it easy for you to share your comments in response to our views, both on MyHometownOhio and also on The Ohio Preservation Network (coming soon at: www.ohiopreservationnetwork.com).

So -- go with us as we take an ongoing look at the people, places, news and views that make up the world of preservation in Ohio.

Photo: Tasumi1968/Creative Commons License