Amarillo hosts Texas Historical Commission forum on statewide preservation

The Texas Historical Commission held a regional workshop Thursday to help develop its historic preservation plan while taking input from various communities across Texas.

Overall, this workshop was one of eight that the commission has planned throughout the state to raise preservation awareness and to get an idea of what communities feel are the most significant opportunities to incorporate into the plan.

Over the next 15 months, the commission has in-person and virtual public forums — known as digital town halls — for interested citizens to find information and give input on the priorities of statewide historic preservation.

At the Amarillo forum, multiple stations were set up throughout the historic Santa Fe Building Auditorium. All stations provided information about what historic buildings and landmarks are throughout the states. There were opportunities for attendees to give input on what actions needed to be taken and what was important to them.

Amy Hammons, a state coordinator for the Texas Mainstreet Program, spoke about the goals and importance of the workshops to gather public comment on statewide preservation in forming its 10-year plan.

“We are here to share information about the different types of preservation resources whether they be above or below ground (buildings, archaeological deposits, etc.) … to capitalize on showing the importance of the historic fabric of the communities through the preservation of these sites," she said.

Hammons stated that many historic structures are built to endure and there is a historical and practical need for saving them.

“These buildings are made to last. Modern buildings have a much shorter lifecycle,” Hammons said. “We are losing a lot of history when we lose these buildings. These workshops are about building networks to talk about the bigger picture of preserving history in communities."

She praised the Amarillo network of concerned citizens that has worked to help preserve history in the city. Hammons stated that Amarillo was a good example that could be a model for other communities.

“So many of the triumphs and the successes that they have had here are because of the people that are doing the contributing here,” she said. “Doing these types of projects helps to show what’s special and unique about your community.”

The state’s Historic Preservation Plan is led by the Lakota Group, a Chicago-based firm specializing in urban planning and historic preservation, which was recently involved in urban planning for San Antonio and Denton.

Nick Kalogersis, a preservation planner with the Lakota Group, stated that his company’s role is to gather feedback from various communities through forums to get a comprehensive plan for preservation that is sustainable.

“We recognize that all people may not be able to participate in the public forums, so we have made other venues, such as online, available to be able to reach a more significant subsection of community input," Kalogersis said.

He said that a state the size of Texas creates a challenge to get a comprehensive plan for preservation, so it was essential to have as many venues for input as possible. Each community forum will be tailored to the specific issues relevant to those regions. He spoke of his upcoming forum in Galveston that will be more related to disaster mitigation planning due to the lingering effects of recent hurricanes.

Center City of Amarillo Executive Director Beth Duke spoke about the importance of the event for the city.

“Today’s event is part of a statewide mandate to get ideas to help form its statewide preservation plan,” Duke said.

She said the ideas from these forums would be part of the larger plan presented to the state Legislature that will be part of the Texas 10-year plan for preservation, if adopted.

“We hope this shows that there is a preservation ethic in Texas, and we hope it shows that people care about saving history and that a proportionate amount of money should go to that. It does enhance the quality of life. Once a building is gone, it is gone forever," Duke said.

She also said that it was great that the Panhandle was included in the eight regional meetings and being part of the Texas Mainstreet Program was a great help in hosting this event.

“Too often, we feel that the Panhandle is left out because of our distance from Austin,” Duke said. “This is truly putting our history on the map.”

This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: Amarillo hosts Texas Historical Commission forum on statewide preservation