Inaugural Decatur Old House Fair
Decatur Metro | September 3, 2008
I don’t think I’m going out on a limb when I say that a lot of Decatur’s pride stems from its historic neighborhoods. (Lord knows it’s not coming from Quizno’s plaza!)
Now the city, in conjunction with the Decatur Preservation Alliance and DeKalb History Center, is giving you a helping hand in learning about and maintaining your historic home!
On Saturday, October 25th from 10a-5p, Decatur will host its first-ever Old House Fair at the Holiday Inn Conference Center. Admission is only $10 in advance and $15 at the door.
All the details can be found here.
I think this is great. They’re absolutely right that the greenest house is one that’s already been built. The showhome on 3rd Ave. certainly deserves recognition for its gee-whizzery and application of new technologies but it still required the leveling of what stood there previously.
One of the cornerstones of architectural sustainability is lovability. If a structure isn’t worthy of affection across a broad spectrum then, as styles change over time, it doesn’t matter how high-tech it is. Few will invest the effort to retain it.
Decatur’s blessed largely with types and styles of homes that have proven to resonate deeply with people a near-century later, in spite of changing styles. By and large, I believe most want to retain them. The burden is making it easier to preserve than to replace and this event seems like a very positive step in the right direction. Kudos.
Indeed Scott. I always thought it a bit ironic that the Green House on Third required essentially tearing down most of the old structure.
Speaking of “green houses”…have you seen the “RainShine” House on Ponce Place yet? (Its the one that’s had the big blue tarp on it for as long as I can remember) Its a little big in scale/mass compared to its neighbors, but there is now a sign showing the final plans. Looks like another interesting LEED house inside the city limits.
I so lust after the Rainshine house. (it actually fronts on Wilton) Rumor has it that the owner is the developer of East Decatur Station. Can’t wait to see it more finished.
I think it is great that the DPA and the Dekalb History Center is doing this. During the whole Oakhurst historic district debate, one of the things we said that historic preservationalists should be doing was more education, and that such efforts could have a more positive impact than creating a historic district.
I do hope to see that the Decatur Historic Preservation Commission becomes involved in this project as well and I hope that they realize that their charter is more than just accepting or rejecting certificate of appropriateness applications, but they have a broader educational function as well, as is set forth in the city code. I don’t see them doing much of that now, so I hope that they take this opportunity to get involved.
With regard to whether an old house is “green” or not, I do agree, Scott, that it is kind of funny that they consider demoing a 1,000 square foot structure and put it in a landfill and replace it with a 3,000 square foot new house as “green,” despite the obvious positive environmental qualities of the new house. On the other hand, I remember the old house, and it was not historic by any means (unless you consider post WWII mass produced housing historic), was tiny, and was outdated for modern life. If a house outlives its usefulness and sits empty, isn’t it more “green” to build an new house with modern environmental standards? It’s an interesting debate.
However, I do think that we should realize that most of our older homes in Decatur are pretty much energy hogs and despite the many steps we can take to improve their energy efficiency, not many are doing so. Hopefully this workshop will help educate. Good job DPA and Dekalb History!
Just for clarification, while co-sponsored by the DPA and DeKalb History Center, this is an initiative led primarily by the city (namely by the city’s Preservation Planner Regina Brewer). So credit should be given where due.
Regardless, I also hope members of the HPC show up for the event, but perhaps not with such a reprimanding tone.
If you are interested, there is more information on the house blog:
http://rainshinehouseatlanta.blogspot.com/
Let us know if you have any questions.