BCon Weekend Update: Friday Classes

It has been a hectic weekend for the Building Conservation program. Classes got off to an early start with a rare Friday morning Preservation Law Class. After adjunct professor Dorothy Miner's presentation, small teams of students presented and discussed the case briefs that were assigned two weeks ago. Each team then received another set of cases to brief and prepare for discussion for the next class in several weeks.

After breaking at noon for a brief group lunch (catered in) and some library time, classes resumed with Professional Practice. This week's guest speakers were Joe Fama, Executive Director of the Troy Architectural Program, Inc., a not-for-profit housing and community design center, and Beth Cumming, Building Conservation alumna ('02) and historic preservation tax credit specialist at the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Joe spoke about TAP's recent projects in Troy and Greene County, New York, adaptively reusing former school buildings into affordable housing and programs to market older and historic former commercial and industrial space. Beth, and adjunct professor Ruth Pierpont, spoke about the role of historic preservation tax credits and other NYS OPRHP programs.

Shortly after the conclusion of Professional Practice, students dove into Preservation Design Studio. Discussion and activity focused on needs identified at the March 9th community meeting, completing the existing conditions report for the Upper Congress Street/Mt. Ida neighborhood study, and reaching agreement on final products. After agreeing on the various sections to be completed for the existing conditions analysis, students outlined subjects and graphics for a final Powerpoint presentation and a web site for the Mt. Ida neighborhood. The web site will include a .pdf file of the exististing conditions analysis of the neighborhood, resource documents, historic maps and photographs, recommended projects, neighborhood/city contacts and resources, and helpful links. Completed "blue form" survey sheets will also be included for each building in the neighborhood, along with design guidelines.

Preservation Design Studio included a working dinner, which, like lunch, was catered in. As is periodically the case, students and faculty were pleased to welcome a prospective BCon student, a restoration mason from Kent, Ohio who was visiting for the weekend.