Lectures

HSF’s Preservation Lecture Series helps fulfill HSF’s mission to preserve and protect Savannah’s heritage through advocacy, education and community involvement. The purpose of the series is to educate the public about the benefits of preservation as well as the value of their architectural surroundings and life style. Every year a range of topics and venues are selected to highlight the varying aspects of preservation and showcase the different types of architecture that Savannah has to offer. The 2013 Preservation Lecture Series will feature lectures in February, April and May.

Upcoming Lectures:

May 21, 2013

Urban Village Narratives

Andrée Iffrig
6:00pm Lecture

Historic Savannah Foundation was founded nearly 60 years ago by community people with a cause: to stem the tide of senseless demolition of the city’s heritage and imagine a future inclusive of its historic resources. HSF saved a few buildings and started a movement that ultimately resulted in the development of heritage tourism and establishment of the one square-mile National Historic Landmark District. Meanwhile, there are 14 other historic districts throughout the city and county in differing stages of decay and development, some healthier than others, but all with something to be proud of. These areas are in danger of losing their sense of place if historic structures are not repaired and maintained for future generations.

Urban Village Narratives is about preserving sense of place through ongoing community activism. It uses as a case study the example of Inglewood, a community in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Beginning more than 40 years ago, the community began to organize to overturn a civic planning decision to run a freeway through Inglewood and destroy its neighborhoods. Residents’ first steps included conducting an inventory of historic and older building stock, and writing the area’s own urban plan to embed preservation and context-sensitive new development in future planning decisions. Against all odds, the community prevailed and gained a seat at the planning table with the City.

More recently, a new generation of dedicated Inglewoodians prepared a second, sustainable urban plan, the Inglewood Design Initiative (IDI). Its themes are protecting the area’s natural environment, built heritage and inclusive socio-economic nature. The IDI was built on a foundation of conversation cafés and other encounters that brought people together to talk about their longing and concerns. This storytelling ignited a sense of shared commitment that continues to fuel efforts to maintain an inclusive, diverse and economically stable community.

Presenter Andrée Iffrig will focus on Inglewood’s struggles with the City, the residents’ heroic efforts to inventory and keep historic buildings in use and good repair, and a second generation of community activism. She will examine how Inglewood overcame municipal and developer intransigence, by way of creating a sense of what is possible in Savannah if people band together to renew their communities.

Graduate architect, community builder and Royal Architectural Institute of Canada medalist, Andrée Iffrig is the author of the Inglewood Design Initiative, a framework for sustainable urban development in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. She has a background in historic building inventories and community renewal. At DIRTT Environmental Solutions she leads the Sustainability Team and is a passionate advocate for more sustainable development.

This lecture is part of HSF’s Preservation Festival and is free and open to the public. This lecture is proudly sponsored by Queensborough National Bank & Trust Company.

HSF’s 2013 Preservation Lecture Series were supported by the Georgia Humanities Council and the National Endowment for the Humanities and through appropriations from the Georgia General Assembly.

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Historic Tax Credit Training

HSF recently partnered with the Georgia Historic Preservation Division to host a training session on historic tax incentives on Decemeber 6 and 7, 2012. Forty participants from Savannah and around the state were given the opportunity to tour in-progress and recently completed tax credit projects, as well as learn the economic benefits of preservation tax incentives and how to use them from state and local experts. HSF would like to thank our title sponsor, Mopper-Stapen, Realtors, and other partners and sponsors, Quatrefoil Consulting, Georgia Historic Preservation Division, the City of Savannah and the Metropolitan Planning Commission.

PARTNERS AND SPONSORS:

This project has been financed in part with Federal funds from the National Park Service, U.S. Department of Interior, through the Historic Preservation Division of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources. However, the contents, opinions, and recommendations expressed in the Request for Proposals does not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the Department of the Interior or the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, nor does the mention of trade names, commercial products or consultants constitute endorsement or recommendation by these agencies. This program receives Federal assistance for identification and protection of historic properties. Under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, as amended, the U.S. Department of the Interior prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, gender or disability in its federally-assisted programs. If you believe you have been discriminated against in any program, activity, or facility as described above, or if you desire further information, please write to: Office for Equal Opportunity, National Park Service, 1849 C Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20240.