The Architectural History Department Lecture Series Presents:
“The Ordinary Iconic Ranch House”
A Lecture by Richard Cloues, State Historic Preservation Officer
Unit Manager, Survey and National Register
Tuesday Nov. 10 6:30 pm
SCAD Student Center
120 Montgomery St, Savannah, Georgia
** Free and open to the public.
At 2 p.m. Nov. 19, 2009, in City Hall, Savannah City Council will consider several revisions to the Historic District Ordinance, which governs development in the Historic District. The proposed revisions to the ordinance, as well as the Historic Buildings Map, can be downloaded below.
The proposed revisions are divided into four main categories: height, large-scale development, urban design, and appeals and variance processes. All of these revisions resulted in additional terminology within the definitions section. Sections within the ordinance were also restructured and relocated within the ordinance to be more intuitive and provide better direction to the reader and reviewer. Additionally, the proposed revisions take into consideration the recommendations of the Downtown Savannah Master Plan and the Comprehensive Plan. It also includes a recommendation to amend the Historic Building Map, which identifies all designated historic properties within the overlay district boundaries, to assemble all previous amendments onto one digitized map. No additional buildings are being added to the map.
October 27th General Meeting
5 o’clock Gordon Hall chapel
New professor to our department Professor Taylor will give a short introduction to his career experiences, expertise, and what brought him to SCAD. Make sure to bring a gauntlet of tricky questions for him. Please no flash photography.
Well, the tiny inkling of hope for preservation funds in the stimulus package seems to have been squashed. Check out The Square for the details. It involves lattes. Delish.
Your shoes are talking. Tank is empty. Tuition is coming up. Last quarter’s tuition has just been labeled a delinquent payment. Well maybe the economy doesn’t always feel like it is on our side. The liberal news channel and the conservative news channel talk about the economy like it is out to get us. This is scarier in that they actually agree on something.
But it is important to recall those days from Preservation Economics class. If those days and lessons feel all too fuzzy, dig deep. We have to remember how well preservation and economics work together. Especially in times of dismal markets, preservation seems to make much more sense to many more people. Yes, preservation and a bad economy dance together like two senior citizens after medication time. So click here, take a deep breath and sink your grimy brick dusting hands in this well crafted (albeit tiny) video that reminds us of the dollars and…oh you knew this was coming…sense of preservation. Chock full of simple figures, good points, and high school teacher grade humor.
Very encouraging story today in the Savannah Morning Newspaper. The small coastal community of Pin Point is to be the first designated historic district in unincorporated Chatham County. Pin Point was founded by freed slaves from Ossabaw Island in 1890.
Their history is rich with triumph and perseverance. The newly free citizens established their community along Moon River, and built a thriving seafood business which sustained them financially. They passed the trade down through generations, and many of the residents recall their endless hours of shucking and canning oysters and crab meat with a fond sentimentality. “We were poor, but, when I look at it, we were rich,” says Abraham Famble, a lifelong resident.
The residents of Pin Point have refused to sell their waterfront community for condominium development and commercial business. 68% supported the move to petition for historic status, while only 50% was needed. The Chatham County Historic Preservation Commission gave its recommendation for approval.
The residents observe that the move will likely raise the property value, but that hasn’t deterred them. “Development has made a real imprint on some of the old communities - really destroyed them,” says Sharon Varn, “By preserving Pin Point, future generations can learn how hard their forefathers worked to survive and the struggles they had being dependent on the river.”
February 9th is a special day. It is the current Co-President of Spa’s birthday, Whitney Bayers. Be sure to shower her with well wishes and maybe some constructive criticism. No, all kidding aside she has done a wonderful job as Co-President and has been a pleasure to work with. And though we’re all confident that our next elected President will serve well, we know that as this academic year comes to a close, Spa will lose a very significant and effective member and leader. Happy birthday Whitney.
Theo H. M. Prudon, PhD, FAIA
Feburary 25th 7:30pm at River Club
Theo Prudon is a leading expert on the preservation of modern architecture, was educated at the University of Delft, Netherlands, and Columbia University where he received his doctorate. He is a partner of Prudon & Partners, based in New York City, and teaches preservation at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation. Prudon is also a designer for the Shashi Cann Collective, an award winning interior design and architecture firm. Prudon is the President of DOCOMOMO US and a board member of DOCOMOMO International. DOCOMOMO is an organization dedicated to the study of significant works of Modern Movement architecture, landscape design, and urban planning around the world. He has just written a book called “The Preservation of Modern Architecture.”
