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| Lauren Bacall doctormarco.com |
Hello Everyone:
Another day, another memorial. So sad. Before I get started on explaining more preservation jargon, I would like to offer a few thoughts on the passing of Lauren Bacall. Lauren Bacall was no mere actor, she was a presence on screen. The famous husky voice of hers insinuated a sense mystery that pulled you toward her. Ms. Bacall was the epitome of style, grace, and class, qualities sorely lacking in the current crop of male and female actors. These qualities were no mere affectations, they came naturally. If that weren't enough, Ms. Bacall proved that she was equally at home in the classic noir films of the forties and comedy. Etched into our collective cultural conscious is that famous scene from her debut film To Have and Have Not. Hers was no mere walk on role, she starred opposite no less than Humphrey Bogart, a major star in his own right, in a movie based on the story Ernest Hemingway and adapted for the screen by William Faulkner, and directed by Howard Hawks. An ordinary actor would have surely wilted but not Ms. Bacall. It was that scene between her and her soon-to-husband Mr. Bogart that captured the audience's attention. We all know it:
You don't have to act with me Steve. You don't have to say anything and you don't have to do anything. Not a thing. Oh, maybe just whistle. [Pause] You know how to whistle, don't you Steve? You put your two lips together and blow.
You can just feel the sexual tension. The role of Vivian Sternwood in the screen adaptation of Raymond Chandler's debut novel The Big Sleep, had Lauren Bacall written all over it. By the time it was made both Ms. Bacall and Mr. Bogart were married, yet you can just feel the chemistry between them about to explode. That kind of allure is a rare commodity in contemporary Hollywood. Most of the time, it just feels so manufactured and endlessly replicated. I'd like to end it here with a line from the movie Casablanca. Even though Lauren Bacall wasn't in it, I think it's quite appropriate, "Here's looking at you." Goodbye Lauren Bacall.
http://blog.preservationnation.org/2014/preservation-tips-tools-preservation-jargon-part-two/#.U6C_oldVYx
Hello Again:
Given the heaviness of the preambles of this and yesterday's posts, I thought I might lighten the mood a little with another round of preservation jargon. Specifically, with the help of Cassie Keener, an Editorial Intern at the National Trust for Historic Preservation, I would like to help you navigate your way through some of the mind boggling acronyms, organizations, and federal laws that compose preservation's lexicon. I still have fond (insert irony) memories of being stunned into a stupor with all the terms I was getting zapped with. Fear not, yours truly is here to guide through the maze or at the very least, I can finally figure out what NEPA stands for.
Adaptive Reuse: think of it as a form of recycling. Specifically, adaptive reuse is the "Process of reusing an old building or site for a purpose other than which it was originally built or design for." Downtown loft developments are a perfect example of this process. They usually involving taking former commercial or industrial buildings and converting them into residential and/or mixed-use spaces.
Comprehensive Plan: this is the official plan adopted by municipalities in order to guide the decision-making for potential public and private actions that impact community development.
Enabling Law: this is law, enacted by a state government, which establishes the boundaries for the actions of municipal governments. It's an authoritative source for promulgating local historic preservation ordinances. Maybe it's me but I think of an Enabling Law as an elastic guideline.
Environmental Assessment or Impact Statement (EA or EIA): an EA or EIA is a "Document prepared by a state or federal agency to establish compliance with obligations under federal or state environmental protection laws to consider the impact of proposed actions on the environment including historic resources." In California, we have the California Environmental Quality Act which requires an Environmental Impact Report for all new major construction. The EIR process has been used in the past as a cudgel by individuals who, for no other reason, abuse the process in order to make point. It has also be abused by developers trying to ramrod their project through the approval process. Regardless, environmental protection laws are there for a reason not someone's convenience.
Landmark: this is a word used quite frequently by preservation enthusiasts. A Landmark is "A site or structure designated by a local preservation ordinance or other law to be worthy of preservation because of its particular historic, architectural, archeological, or cultural significance." The basis for what can be deemed Landmark-worthy is a set of criteria established by state historic preservation laws, adapted from federal laws. So, no, the house you grew up in is probably not eligible for Landmark status, unless you grew up in the White House.
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA): "Primary federal laws requiring consideration of potential impacts of major actions on the environment, including historic and cultural resources." Fairly straight forward
National Historic Landmark (NHL): this acronym had the distinction of being the first preservation-relation joke I cracked. Me (during class on a random Thursday evening): NHL stand for National Historic Landmark not National Hockey League. Professor loving it, rest of the class not getting it. It actually is defined as, "Property included in the National Register of Historic Places that has been judged by the Secretary of Interior to have 'national significance in American history, archeology, architecture, engineering and culture.'"
National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA): signed into law in 1966 by then-President Lyndon B. Johnson, the NHPA is "federal law that encourages the preservation of cultural and historic in the United States." Here's an interesting piece of irony, during the post-World War II occupation of Japan, the Japanese based "Monuments Men" were very active in the creation of the 1950 Cultural Properties Protection Law. Their goal was to encourage the Japanese people to value and protect their cultural heritage, even though Japan had a history of enacting Cultural Property Protection laws since 1871.
National Register of Historic Places: "Official inventory of 'districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects significant in American history, architecture, archeology, engineering, and culture." Again, fairly straight forward.
Precedent: this a legal term which refers to "A prior case or decision similar or identical in fact or legal principle to the matter at hand that provides authority for resolution in a similar or identical way." Again, very straight forward.
I'll be honest, there are times when historic preservation can seem like nothing more than a tsunami of legal and technical jargon. However, thanks to the tool kits and tips provided by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, getting a place designated a Landmark does not not have to be so daunting. If you would like to find out how you can get a place in your community designated, you can go to http://www.preservationnation.org. If you are outside the United States, the nice people at the Trust may be able to provide with links to your country's historic preservation organizations.
http://blog.preservationnation.org/2014/preservation-tips-tools-preservation-jargon-part-two/#.U6C_oldVYx
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| Durham Market Place Durham, North Carolina durham-nc.com |
Given the heaviness of the preambles of this and yesterday's posts, I thought I might lighten the mood a little with another round of preservation jargon. Specifically, with the help of Cassie Keener, an Editorial Intern at the National Trust for Historic Preservation, I would like to help you navigate your way through some of the mind boggling acronyms, organizations, and federal laws that compose preservation's lexicon. I still have fond (insert irony) memories of being stunned into a stupor with all the terms I was getting zapped with. Fear not, yours truly is here to guide through the maze or at the very least, I can finally figure out what NEPA stands for.
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| Saginaw, Michigan en.wikipedia.org |
Comprehensive Plan: this is the official plan adopted by municipalities in order to guide the decision-making for potential public and private actions that impact community development.
Enabling Law: this is law, enacted by a state government, which establishes the boundaries for the actions of municipal governments. It's an authoritative source for promulgating local historic preservation ordinances. Maybe it's me but I think of an Enabling Law as an elastic guideline.
Environmental Assessment or Impact Statement (EA or EIA): an EA or EIA is a "Document prepared by a state or federal agency to establish compliance with obligations under federal or state environmental protection laws to consider the impact of proposed actions on the environment including historic resources." In California, we have the California Environmental Quality Act which requires an Environmental Impact Report for all new major construction. The EIR process has been used in the past as a cudgel by individuals who, for no other reason, abuse the process in order to make point. It has also be abused by developers trying to ramrod their project through the approval process. Regardless, environmental protection laws are there for a reason not someone's convenience.
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| Verandah House Corinth, Mississippi civilwartraveler.com |
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA): "Primary federal laws requiring consideration of potential impacts of major actions on the environment, including historic and cultural resources." Fairly straight forward
National Historic Landmark (NHL): this acronym had the distinction of being the first preservation-relation joke I cracked. Me (during class on a random Thursday evening): NHL stand for National Historic Landmark not National Hockey League. Professor loving it, rest of the class not getting it. It actually is defined as, "Property included in the National Register of Historic Places that has been judged by the Secretary of Interior to have 'national significance in American history, archeology, architecture, engineering and culture.'"
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| Post card of Penn Station New York City, New York en.wikipedia.org |
National Register of Historic Places: "Official inventory of 'districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects significant in American history, architecture, archeology, engineering, and culture." Again, fairly straight forward.
Precedent: this a legal term which refers to "A prior case or decision similar or identical in fact or legal principle to the matter at hand that provides authority for resolution in a similar or identical way." Again, very straight forward.
I'll be honest, there are times when historic preservation can seem like nothing more than a tsunami of legal and technical jargon. However, thanks to the tool kits and tips provided by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, getting a place designated a Landmark does not not have to be so daunting. If you would like to find out how you can get a place in your community designated, you can go to http://www.preservationnation.org. If you are outside the United States, the nice people at the Trust may be able to provide with links to your country's historic preservation organizations.
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