News from Preservation Virginia: Save the Dates

Summer General Meeting, June 11, 2011

The Summer General Public Meeting will be at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, June 11, 2011 at Greenway Court, near White Post in Clarke County. Stabilization of three buildings at Greenway Court, Lord Fairfax’s estate and home in the Colonies, was selected as the Branch’s first project when the Branch was initially organized in late 2008. In 2009, the Branch raised matching funds to secure a state grant for emergency stabilization work. We are delighted to report that this stabilization work is underway and is expected to be substantially complete by June.

At the June 11th meeting, you will have the opportunity to see the recently completed and ongoing work firsthand, with the contractor who is doing the work on hand to discuss the results. In addition, Bob Stieg and Maral Kalbian will make a presentation on the dendrochronology analysis completed last year, which provides definitive dates of construction for the land office and smokehouse.

This meeting will be free to Preservation Virginia members and $10 per person for non-members. Greenway Court is located on White Post Road (Route 658) south of the village of White Post. On the day of the tour, “Historic Site Tour” signs will be posted at the property’s driveway. Following the tour, light refreshments will be served.
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Preservation Virginia Informational Meeting

Preservation Virginia will hold its annual meeting in Winchester September 25-27, 2011. With that in mind, an informative meeting will be held on May 10, 4 PM in the conference room at the Bowman Building of Shenandoah University, 20 S. Cameron St. The meeting will take place with Louis Malon, director of preservation services for Preservation Virginia, to go over what Preservation Virginia is all about and what this convention can mean to our community.

This meeting is open to the public. Anyone with an interest in preservation and the conference is welcome to attend.

For more information, contact Sandy Snyder at 540-535-3543 or ssnyder@su.edu.

Cemetery Preservation

The protection and conservation of cemeteries is a growing concern around Virginia and the nation. As part of the response to raise awareness of this issue, Preservation Virginia has created a Google Map that contains general locations, images and a brief history of some endangered or forgotten historic family cemeteries in Virginia.

If you know of a cemetery that you would like to add to the map, please contact Sonja Ingram at singram@preservationvirginia.org or (804) 551-3249.

Get Ready to Celebrate

While we are preparing for Apple Blossom in Winchester this weekend, the celebration of our traditions and town won’t end there. National Preservation Month is coming in May under the theme “Celebrating America’s Treasures.” With that in mind, PHW has teamed up with the Old Town Development Board to host an architectural treasure hunt downtown. Look for the official contest form in The Winchester Star every Friday in May, and in May’s edition of Old Town Compass.

Don’t forget about “This Place Matters,” either. The National Trust for Historic Preservation has a map for you to add your special place and let the world see. Add yours and read about the other sites already posted here.

Stay tuned for more preservation-related activities coming in May, culminating with PHW’s Annual Meeting on June 5.

State Officials Visit Downtown

State officials from toured downtown Winchester on Monday as part of a two-day trip around the theme of “Prosperity Through Preservation.” Historic tax credits were discussed in conjunction with Winchester’s success stories, such as the Lovett building, as well as the ongoing projects at the Solenberger building and Taylor Hotel, among others.

Rebecca Layne of the Star reports:

[Doug] Domenech [Virginia secretary of natural resources] was often unable to hold back his enthusiasm, at one point describing the downtown as “the place to be.”

“It’s very impressive what’s happening here,” he said. “You’ve got the right combination of public and private commitment. There’s a real vision here to transform the downtown.

“We’re here to discover ways the Department of Historic Resources can be involved more in Winchester,” he went on, adding that the DHR administers the tax-credit program.

Jim Deskins, executive director of the Economic Development Authority and economic redevelopment director for the city, led much of the tour. “What the whole revitalization is about is reaching back into the past and dusting it off and putting it back into the future,” he said.

Click here for the Winchester’s Star coverage of the tour downtown (login required).

Click here for the related Open Forum by Bob Bartley (login required).

Click here for TV3’s coverage of the plans for the Taylor.

$100 Million Milestone for Old Town

Winchester’s downtown was recently recognized by the Main Street program as the first in Virginia to reach $100 million in private investments. The watershed project, as cited by Karen Helm, executive director for the Old Town Development Board, was the Feltner Building at 9 Court Square in the mid-1990s.

Though less than $12 million total (without adjustments for inflation) had been invested downtown in the previous decade, then-President Wilbur M. Feltner got the bank to invest $2.5 million to renovate the building.
. . . .
“After a successful completed project,” Helm said, “there’s more of a sense of security that if somebody comes and makes an investment down here, they’ll get a return on their investment. I don’t think anybody likes to be the first to have confidence in an aging downtown, but Mr. Feltner did.”

Read the full article by Vic Bradshaw in the Winchester Star here (login required).

Find Old Town on Facebook at www.facebook.com/pages/Old-Town-Winchester-VA/

Patsy Cline Memorabilia on Display

Celebrating Patsy Cline, Inc. (CPC) announces the opening of a new Patsy Cline exhibit at the Winchester-Frederick County Visitor Center, 1400 S. Pleasant Valley Road, Winchester, VA, beginning Saturday, April 9, 2011.

This special display was made possible by Ann Denkler, Professor of History at Shenandoah University. “These are exciting times for our organization,” notes Judy Sue Huyett-Kempf, Executive Director, Patsy Cline Historic House, as renovations are underway at 608 S. Kent Street. “This showcase of Patsy Cline items has never been viewed by the public and builds excitement for the anticipated opening of the Historic House.”

The exhibit is comprised of some original personal documents and collections mixed with reproductions of items belonging to Patsy Cline. The special exhibit will remain on display until the official opening of the Patsy Cline Historic House.

The Visitor Center is opened daily from 9 am – 5 pm. For more information on happenings in our community, visit www.VisitWinchesterVa.com. Don’t forget to follow the progress at the Patsy Cline house on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Patsy-Cline-Historic-House .