President Obama Brings 'Change' to Preservation

With all the various bills and stimulus packages moving through Washington since President Obama's inauguration it is great to see that historic preservation has not been forgotten.

In late March the President signed the Omnibus Public Lands Management Act into law. Among its numerous provisions are new enabling laws and expansions on those previously ratified. Some of the areas dealt with in the Act are the Preserve America program, Saving America's Treasures Grants, Battlefield protections, heritage tourism, and the National Parks Service.

Read through the National Trust for Historic Preservation's website description of the bill and see how it affects historic preservation at http://www.preservationnation.org/take-action/advocacy-center/legislative-briefs/omnibus-public-lands.html

Also, while on the site take the chance to explore the NTHP's new Preservation Nation website to find out more about how historic preservation is being dealt with in Washington and to see all the new additions the NTHP has made to their website.

In other HP-related news, a bill is being introduced that could give financial incentives to property owners that retrofit their historic buildings to make them more energy efficient. Here is an exerpt from a recent NTHP bulletin:

House Energy and Commerce Committee Releases Draft Energy Bill with REEP Provisions

Rep. Peter Welch’s (D-VT) Retrofit for Energy and Environmental Performance (REEP) bill (HR 1778), which includes a 120 percent boost as an incentive for retrofitting the cost of existing homes and buildings on the National Register, was included in the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s draft energy bill that was unveiled on Tuesday. Under REEP, homeowners could qualify for $1,000-$3,000 in financial incentives for achieving a 10-20 percent increase in efficiency, with another $150 for every additional percentage point of energy savings achieved. Businesses could qualify for $0.15 per square foot for the first 20 to 30 percent increase in efficiency with an increasing incentive of up to $2.50 per square foot for energy reductions over 50 percent. Incentives for both homes and commercial buildings would be capped at 50 percent of the cost of the retrofit.

Upcoming Events . . .

May 1-3 – 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. (Fri. and Sat.) 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.( Sun.) - 1605 33rd Street – Michel Menard House – Operation Photo Rescue - operationphotorescue.org – This team of volunteers continues the theme of the Historic Homes Tour by helping restore photos and memories damaged by Hurricane Ike. Please bring up to 20 damaged photos by and let them show you how photographs you once thought had to be thrown away can be brought back. There is no charge for this service. The 1838 Michel B. Menard House will be open for viewing during the hours of the Homes Tour for $3 per person.

For more information, contact Matt or Brian at 409.750.9108

Post-Ike House Moves No.I

The board of directors of the Galveston Historical Foundation has accepted the donation of four houses that were damaged during Hurricane Ike on September 13, 2008. They range in date from around 1860 to 1900. GHF's Revolving Fund at work . . .

The Preservation Texas Education Council will hold its Spring Seminar at Ashton Villa on Friday, May 29th from 9 to 4. Topics will focus on green building practices as they apply to historic structures. The seminar is $65 for Preservation Texas members and $75 for non-members. Lunch will be provided. For more information, please contact Matt Farragher at the Galveston Historical Foundation at 409.765.7834 or matt.farragher@galvestonhistory.org .

A Second Chance

This past February, we were about to sell a house that we moved to 1605 Avenue K, using our revolving fund. That house was later featured as a rehabilitation-in-progress during our Historic Homes Tour and is now nearing completion. The owner of a house in the next block approached us about purchasing his house, after a fire caused minor damage. The GHF Real Estate Committee reviewed the property and decided it was an important early house for Galveston and should be saved.

The first thing was to clear the vegetation from the site, and begin removing literally tons of trash from within the house. The fire did no structural damage to the house, which we believe could date to the 1850s. A new roof was installed, charred wood and loose plaster removed and 1920s porch columns were replaced with ones more appropriate to the original construction date. Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps show that the house was originally constructed on the adjacent lot, at the corner of 16th Street and Avenue K but was moved to its current location sometime after the 1900 Storm. A back T-shaped gallery continues the axis of the first floor hallway and opens to a large back yard with a canopy of pecan trees.

The house has 2,000 sq. ft. of space and has two slate mantles (one damaged by the heat of the fire), a claw-foot tub, pocket doors between two rooms and French doors between rooms on the opposite side of the first floor hall. The house is receiving a fresh coat of paint on the exterior this week and will soon be available for sale to someone ready to put their personal touch on this circa 150 year-old structure.

Lead in the Soil, An Often Overlooked Source

As the City of Galveston Lead Task Force continues to look at ways to remediate the Lead Based Paint issues on the Island, a study out of Indiana highlighted in Medical News Today may hold some promise for an economically feasible option. The most familiar source of lead is exposure to paint chips or the dust failing paint produces. Many forget to trace another source of exposure to when those chips and dust get into the soil and then onto the hands, faces, and toys of children playing outside. This source can prove to be particularly bad for urban areas (such as Galveston) because the contaminated dust and dirt can travel from one site to another very easily via the wind, erosion or other methods of transfer. There are a few options discussed for remediating the lead levels in soil, even something as simple as watering down the exposed soil could help to aleviate this problem.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/118721.php

History of Hurricanes

Galveston prepared for a possible strike from Tropical Storm Eduardo this week, but the storm never made it to hurricane strength and came ashore to the east of us, between High Island and Sabine Pass. It was good practice for the city and a reminder that we should always be prepared, this time of year. The 1943 Hurricane had the same path that Eduardo took (see link below).

The peak of hurricane season is traditionally the first week of September. The 1900 Storm still ranks as the deadliest natural disaster to strike the United States, where 6,000 to 8,000 people lost their lives on the night of September 8, 1900.

When in Galveston, visit the Great Storm Theater and see the film:

http://www.galvestonhistory.org/1900_Great_Storm_Theater.asp

Here are several links on hurricane history that relate to Galveston:

http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/HAW2/english/history.shtml

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indianola_Hurricane_of_1886

http://www.tropmet.com/gallery/hurricane/gal_1900_galveston.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1915_Galveston_Hurricane

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1943_Surprise_Hurricane

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Carla

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Alicia