Weatherization Meets Historic Preservation: Special Home Tour on 5/22

Join the AHC on May 22nd for a special opportunity to learn more about how you can weatherize an older or historic home and not impact its vintage character.

For more information download the flyer here or visit the AHC website.

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Celebrate Preservation Month at the AHC!

May is Preservation Month and the Architectural Heritage Center is offering several education programs:

This Saturday, May 1st – Invisible Additions: Increasing Space, Minimizing Impacts. Come learn how you can add space to your vintage home while retaining its original character. An architect, a contractor, a house lifter, and a City inspector will be on hand to talk about their work and answer questions.

Guild's Lake Courts Community Hall

Saturday, May 8th – Guild’s Lake Courts: An Impermanent Housing Project. Historian Tanya March will discuss the World War II-era housing complex in Northwest Portland that was  designed by some of Portland’s most notable 20th century architects.

Portland City Hall c. 1910

Saturday, May 15th – Whidden and Lewis and the Maturing of Portland Architecture.  U of O graduate student and Portland preservation advocate Brandon Spencer-Hartle highlights the career of one of Portland’s most significant architecture firms.

Pilot Butte Inn - Bend c. 1930

Saturday, May 22nd – Lost Oregon.  Historian Richard Engeman discusses the social and economic changes – and other events – that have affected Oregon’s built environment, covering everything from Chinook longhouses to the old Oregon State Capitol.

Click on the above links or go to www.Visitahc.org for more information.

The Architectural Heritage Center is owned and operated by the non-profit Bosco-Milligan Foundation.  Education Program revenue supports the AHC mission to preserve the historic character and livability of our built environment, and to promote sustainability through the re-use of period homes and buildings.

Volunteer May 8th to Help the Buckman Neighborhood Inventory Their Wonderful Vintage Homes.

On May 8th, folks in the the Buckman Neighborhood will be surveying their vintage homes, as part of ongoing efforts to nominate a residential section of the neighborhood to the National Register of Historic Places. They need a lot of volunteer assistance to complete this process and it is sure to be a fantastic opportunity for anyone interested in neighborhood history. The Bosco-Milligan Foundation – Architectural Heritage Center has been providing technical assistance to Buckman in their efforts.  Download a flyer about the event here: Buckman Survey Flyer

Potential Demolition in Irvington

Recently, the demolition delay process began on a multi-unit building located at 1510 NE Hancock. The onetime Salvation Army Home for Unwed Mothers is slated for demolition on July 30th unless another solution can be reached. The only reason there is such a delay is because the building is a contributing structure in the Irvington Conservation district. The potential demolition is disappointing given that the building is considered contributing to the district and because Irvington is on the cusp of becoming a National Register Historic District. There is some great information about Irvington on the Oregon State Historic Preservation Office website. Check it out.

For Sale: 1894 PSU System Science House

Portland State University is now offering the old System Science House at 1633 SW 11th to the highest bidder over $1.00! The catch is that the building must be moved by June 30th. The school filed for a demolition permit months ago, so if they don’t get it moved by the end of June it looks like it will be deconstructed.

This 1894 house is one of the few remnants of the old residential neighborhood that decimated by PSU expansion, freeway construction, and urban renewal.

Here’s a PDF with more information.

Any takers?

Replacing the Replacements – A Story of Failed Vinyl Windows

In the April 10th Oregonian, Fred Leeson reported that a condo building in the King’s Hill Historic District, was having all of its windows replaced. In many instances, preservationists would be up in arms when hearing of this, but this is more a case of  “I told you so.” Apparently the 1960s apartment building had its original aluminum framed windows replaced with vinyl a little more than a decade ago. Now the 10- story building has significant problems related to water intrusion – caused by poorly sealed windows.  Not only will the windows have to be replaced (again) the stucco exterior of the building must be replaced as well.

While this is a fairly large apartment building, this same sort of thing can happen in any older building or home and that is why we always encourage people to use storm windows and/or repair their existing windows, sealing air leaks along the way. Don’t get on the vinyl treadmill, as this case exemplifies, you’ll only end up replacing them again and as a result, you’ll never recoup the cost.

The Portland Plan: Make Sure Historic Preservation is Part of the Discussion

The City of Portland has just announced the meeting dates for the next round of Portland Plan workshops. The series of 6 meetings begins on April 26th. It is imperative that we continue to discuss how historic preservation should play an important role in our city’s future. We need voices out there at these meetings to make sure historic preservation is not cast aside or ignored. Please consider attending one of the upcoming meetings and let the mayor, city council, and the staff of the Portland Bureau of Planning and Sustainability know that we can’t plan for our future without a strong deference to our past.

Preserving Neighborhood Schools

The National Trust for Historic Preservation recently published a series of recommendations for preserving community centered schools. Their suggestions might come in handy for those advocating to preserve Portland area high schools and for anyone interested in keeping their neighborhood schools open and active. These schools are so often a major part of neighborhood fabric. It is important that they be maintained or, in some cases, find new uses that make them more accessible to the public and increase their benefits to the surrounding community. Click Here for more on the National Trust’s recommendations for community schools and to download their report Helping Johnny Walk to School. There’s even a picture of our very own Grant High School in the report.