Winter 2013 Preservation Houston newsletter

Keynote Winter 2013

Vol. 23, No. 1

the newsletter of

Preservation Houston

Houston’s Local Partner of the National Trust for Historic Preservation

www.preservationhouston.org

Awards emphasize depth of Houston’s preservation projects ples of what people with vision and determination can do to bring old, sometimes run down, buildings back to life,” Preservation Houston President Patty Porter said. “They nurture our sense of shared history and community and remind us of earlier Houstonians and our own optimism and dedication to building a great city.”

This year, Preservation Houston is also recognizing Beth Madison and J.P. Bryan as Community Pillars for their exemplary leadership in the community and outstanding contributions to Houston’s growth and prosperity.

Madison is the founder of Madison Benefits Group, Inc., and a former Preservation Houston board member.

Many local nonprofit organizations,

courtesy of pete lacker

On Thursday, February 28, The Cornerstone Dinner presenting the 2013 Good Brick Awards will again showcase outstanding preservation projects and the people who make them happen. At the same time, Preservation Houston will celebrate the 35th anniversary of the organization’s founding as Greater Houston Preservation Alliance in 1978.

Thirteen projects have been selected to receive awards from more than two dozen entries. A jury of design and preservation professionals and former Good Brick winners selected the award recipients. Preservation Houston Board Secretary Madeleine M. Hamm chaired the jury.

“These projects serve as living exam-

Tom Hair’s restoration of and addition to historic Fire Station No. 6 (1903) on Washington Avenue is among the winners of the 2013 Good Brick Awards, which will be presented during The Cornerstone Dinner on Thursday evening, February 28.

including the Alley Theatre, Trees for Houston and Foundation for Teen Health, have benefited from her volunteer efforts and quiet philanthropy.

Bryan is the chief executive officer of Torch Energy Advisors, Inc. A di-

rect descendant of Stephen F. Austin, he is a longtime supporter of Preservation Houston, former president of the Texas State Historical Association and Please see Awards, Page 3

villa de luxe

Shadyside designer showcase to benefit Preservation Houston jim parsons

New tour explores 3 historic churches South Main Baptist Church (1930, Hedrick & Gottlieb) is one of three landmark houses of worship being featured on Preservation Houston’s all-new Sacred Spaces of Houston tour Sunday afternoon, January 13. See Page 2.

Preservation Houston and Luxe Interiors + Design, the nation’s largest network of luxury design magazines, are hosting a designer showcase during the first three weekends in February. The house and grounds of a historic Venetian Revival-style estate will be re-imagined by some of the city’s leading interior designers and architects,

such as McDugald-Steele, Connie LeFevre and Lucas/ Eilers Design Associates.

A different designer will be responsible for each room in the mansion, originally built for hardware magnate F.A. Heitmann in 1924. Designed by architect William Ward Watkin, the house stands on two acres in Shadyside, a private place neighborhood

adjacent to Rice University.

The participating designers’ work will complement the home’s historic features, particularly the finely detailed woodwork and paneling that are hallmarks of Watkin’s buildings.

Preservation Houston President-elect Jane-Page Please see Showcase, Page 3

Bond bombshell: Historic HISD high schools may be endangered

School (above right; 1937, John F. Staub, Kenneth Franzheim, Louis A. Glover, Lamar Q. Cato and Harry D. Payne), 3325 Westheimer Road. The historic building could either be gutted and remodeled or completely demolished except for its front façade and auditorium. On a positive note, the historic building at Jefferson Davis High School (1927, Briscoe & Dixon, Maurice J. Sullivan and William Ward Watkin), 1200 Quitman Street, will be renovated using bond funds. Preservation Houston will continue to monitor the planning process for these significant buildings and inform its members of any new developments.

jim parsons

david bush

david bush

When voters approved Houston ISD’s most recent bond issue, they put the future of three significant historic school buildings in doubt. According to the HISD website, outside consultants have recommended the demolition of Charles H. Milby High School (above left; 1927, Louis A. Glover), 1601 Broadway, and Stephen F. Austin High School (above center; 1937, Birdsall P. Briscoe, Maurice J. Sullivan, Sam H. Dixon Jr. and Joseph Finger), 1700 Dumble Street. Architectural elements from the demolished schools would be retained. The HISD website contains contradictory information regarding the future of Mirabeau B. Lamar High

Keynote

2 Winter 2013 from the executive director: RAMONA DAVIS

Ramona Davis Executive Director

Please see Bush, Page 3

St. Paul’s United Methodist Church (1930, Alfred C. Finn), South Main Baptist Church (1930, Hedrick & Gottlieb) and Christ Church Cathedral (1893, Silas McBee with J. Arthur Tempest) will welcome visitors inside their landmark buildings during Preservation Houston’s new Sacred Spaces of Houston tour on Sunday, January 13. The event will provide an unusual opportunity to explore three architecturally significant houses of worship in one afternoon.

The tour will showcase historic churches in the Museum District, Midtown and downtown Houston while examining architectural influences that range from Gothic to Italian Renaissance. Participants will be provided a handout and may tour each property at their own pace. Docents will be on hand at each church to answer questions and discuss specific points about each building’s architecture and history.

Wristbands will go on sale beginning at 1:30 p.m. Sunday, January 13, at St. Paul’s United Methodist Church, 5501 Main

St. Paul’s United Methodist Church (1930, Alfred C. Finn) was designed to resemble the Gothic cathedrals of Europe. The church is one of three that will be featured on Preservation Houston’s Sacred Spaces of Houston tour January 13.

Street at Binz Avenue. Admission is $10 per person ($7 for students with valid ID and Preservation Houston members).

Children 11 and under are admitted free.

Tour participants who walk, bike or ride public transit to the tour will receive a $2 discount on admission. The wristbands provide entry to all three churches.

The three churches will be open for tours from 2 to 4 p.m. Free parking is

available in St. Paul’s surface lot at the northeast corner of Fannin and Binz (enter on Binz). Tour participants are responsible for transportation between the churches. Visitors may drive to each site or take MetroRail; all the churches are short walks from MetroRail stations.

The Sacred Spaces of Houston tour is being held in conjunction with Architecture Center Houston’s special exhibit Sacred Spaces of Texas. The exhibit features 36 examples of the state’s religious architecture, including Spanish missions, painted churches, synagogues, mosques and Hindu temples. The three churches on Preservation Houston’s Sacred Spaces tour are featured in the Sacred Spaces exhibit as well.

Sacred Spaces of Texas is open free to the public until Friday, January 11. Architecture Center Houston is located at 315 Capitol Avenue at Bagby on the first floor of Bayou Place. Paid parking is available in the Hobby Center garage.

For more information about the exhibit, visit www.aiahouston.org.

Ach du Lieber! Germantown is city’s newest historic district Germantown has become the first City of Houston historic district created under the amended historic preservation ordinance, which requires petitions from a supermajority of property owners in the neighborhood seeking district designation. Located northwest of downtown Houston and bounded by Interstate 45, Houston Avenue and Woodland Park, Germantown Historic District contains a collection of early 20thcentury houses including vernacular Victorian cottages and Craftsman bungalows.

After the Texas Revolution, Elizabeth Parrott, the widow of John Austin, allowed German farmers to settle a portion of her late husband’s land grant. The sparsely populated community came to be called Germantown. In deed records, the area is also known as Grota Homestead Subdivision for the German family farm that was redeveloped as the present neighborhood at the turn of the 20th century.

Preservation Houston’s Historic Neighborhood Resources program assisted the

history in print

Programs highlight books on local history

david bush

It seems as though every few weeks a reporter winds up asking me why Houstonians should care about some preservation issue. Why should Houstonians care about the Alabama Theater?

Why should Houstonians care about the Astrodome?

I know why I Bush care about preservation, but it’s for very personal reasons. I grew up in New Orleans and my family appreciated the city’s history and architecture.

They didn’t drill it into my head; the city’s heritage always played a significant role in my life even though I grew up in the vintage 1960s Airline Park subdivision.

My family wasn’t unique.

It’s a commonly held belief among New Orleanians that their city is special. My parents grew up working class, while my brothers and I were raised middle class. One of my grandfathers was a bus driver and the other worked for the can company for 45 years without losing any fingers (a surprising source of pride when he retired).

My grandparents couldn’t afford vacations, but they could take their families to the French Quarter to look in the shops and have coffee and doughnuts (only tourists called them beignets) or ride the streetcar downtown to the movie palaces and flagship department stores.

Those were special occasions for my parents and, later, they instilled in me the sense that something special happens in traditional cities.

For some reason, that feeling seems to have been lost for a long time in Houston.

It may be simply that the city grew so fast that people who had those kinds of experiences here, who had a fondness for Houston’s

Visit Houston’s sacred spaces with PH courtesy of beth zapach

Instead of my usual column, for the next few issues we will be running columns written by Preservation Houston staff members explaining why historic preservation is important to them. We are fortunate to have exceptional people working for PH and I’m happy to give you this opportunity to get to know them better.

The first column is by David Bush, director of programs and information. This article was originally published in slightly different form in Houston House & Home magazine.

architecture walks

This vernacular Victorian cottage (ca. 1919) on Payne Street is typical of houses in the newly designated Germantown Historic District.

area’s civic association by creating an inventory of Germantown’s historic properties and appearing at civic association meetings to answer questions.

Houston City Council approved the designation of the Germantown Historic District in December. The measure passed 11 to 5. Voting for the historic district were Mayor Annise Parker and Council members Wanda Adams, Ellen Cohen, Stephen Costello, Jerry Davis, Ed Gonzalez, Lar-

ry Green, Mike Laster, Melissa Noriega, Oliver Pennington and James Rodriguez.

Texas Historical Commission has determined that the Germantown/Grota Homestead district is eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places. The neighborhood is threatened by the proposed widening of the North Freeway. The local and national designations would provide limited protection from the highway project.

Remember the Houston monorail? Anna Mod does —or at least she has written about it in her book Building Modern Houston, which focuses on the city’s explosive post-World War II growth and development.

Mod’s look at Space City architecture of the 1950s, ’60s and ’70s will be featured during Preservation Houston’s History in Print author series.

The free program will be held Tuesday evening, January 29, at Looscan Neighborhood Library, 2510 Willowick Road just north of Westheimer.

In July 2012, Mod, an author, Good Brick Award recipient and longtime Preservation Houston member, presented this program for DOCOMOMO-US (Documentation and Conservation of Buildings, Sites and Neighborhoods of the Modern Movement) in New York City.

Please see Print, Page 3

National Trust names new Houston field officer The National Trust for Historic Preservation will station one of its senior field officers in Houston beginning in mid-January.

Beth Wiedower will move to Texas from Arkansas, where she served as director of the Rural Heritage Development Initiative in the Arkansas Delta.

In 2011, the National Trust closed its Southwest Field Office in Fort

Worth amid organization-wide budget cuts. The Fort Worth office had served Arkansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas for many years. The Trust has not announced what areas the Houston-based field officer will serve. A field officer in Laredo currently represents the National Trust in southwest Texas.

The U.S. Congress chartered the National Trust for Historic Pres-

ervation in 1949. The privately funded, not-for-profit organization works to preserve America’s historic places. The National Trust is headquartered in Washington, D.C., and operates full-service regional field offices in Charleston, S.C., and Denver.

Preservation Houston has been Houston’s designated Local Partner of the National Trust since 2006.

Wiedower: will be stationed here starting mid-Jan.

Keynote

Print

continued from Page 2 The international organization works to increase public awareness and appreciation of the Modern movement in architecture and design.

Mod is a preservation specialist with SWCA Environmental Consultants in Houston. She holds a master’s degree in historic

preservation from the University of Vermont and is a lecturer with the Center for Historic Preservation at the University of Houston’s Hines College of Architecture.

Building Modern Houston will be presented in the community meeting room on the second floor of Looscan Library. Doors open at 6:15 p.m.; the presentation begins at 6:30. The program is free and

Showcase

continued from Page 1 Crump and former PH Board member Bill Stubbs, both with the American Society of Interior Designers, are cochairing the showcase. Preservation Houston Board members Nancy Ames and Eileen Hricik are co-chairing the opening night Speakeasy Soirée on Friday, February 1. Preservation Houston members will receive an invitation to the Roaring ’20s-themed

Awards

continued from Page 1 a noted collector of Texana.

Anna Mod will receive the Martha Peterson Award, given in memory of the longtime Preservation Houston volunteer. Mod is being recognized for her community service, particularly her pro bono efforts on behalf of historic preservation in Houston.

Juried awards will be presented to: n Tom Hair for the restoration and adaptive re-use of the former Fire Station No. 6 (1903) as the new home of Axiom, a marketing communications agency. Clifford H. Carlin of Carlin/White Associates designed the renovation and sympathetic addition. n Cheryl and Dave Bowman for the renovation of their mid-century house, which was built for the 1954 Parade of Homes in the Glenbrook Valley Historic District. n Krissy and Will Hirtz for

event. Tickets are $150 per person.

The designer showcase will be open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays, February 2, 9 and 16, and noon to 4 p.m.

Sundays, February 3, 10 and 17. Tickets are $25 per person in advance and $30 at the door. Advance tickets may be purchased online at www.preservationhouston.org.

Parking is not allowed in Shadyside.

Complimentary shuttle service will be offered; further details will be provided with the ticket.

restoring their Southern Colonial style house in River Oaks.

The Russell Brown Co. built the house in 1934. Tammy Hodgson of EDI Architecture designed the restoration. n Annunciation Catholic Church (1871, 1881, 1900) and the Archdiocese of Galveston/ Houston for the restoration of the landmark church’s steeple, façade and stained glass windows.

Fretz Con- Madison struction Company was responsible for the project. n 500 Fannin LLC for preserving downtown’s Wilson Building (1932), designed by William Ward Watkin. Zeigler Cooper Architects planned the project, which transformed the Art Deco landmark into the new home of Fretz Construction.

Bush

continued from Page 2 history and architecture, were so outnumbered by new arrivals that their sense of the city was lost in the crowd. Fortunately, we seem to have reached a turning point.

In December, homeowners northwest of downtown Houston succeeded in having their neighborhood designated as the Germantown Historic District. It’s a community of small Victorian houses and Craftsman cottages. There aren’t any ornate mansions or fabulous estates, but the neighborhood is important to the people who live there, and it’s important to Houston.

Historic preservation is about freedom of choice. For some people, nothing but brand new will do, while others prefer the patina of traditional neighborhoods. You can always build new, but you can’t build old.

The best way to ensure Houston has

open to the public.

In addition to her talk, Mod will autograph copies of Building Modern Houston, Mod which will be available for sale for $24.

History in Print will continue in March when Karen

Hess Rogers, Lee Pecht and Alan Harris Bath discuss their book Rice University: One Hundred Years in Pictures. Rice Historical Society founder Rogers, Rice archivist Pecht and historian Bath included more than 300 photos chronicling Rice’s history in the book; for History in Print, they will share some of their favorite images — including some that didn’t

The showcase will be open by reservation only on weekdays for lectures, lunch and private group tours. Tickets are $20 per person for groups of 20 or more. All group reservations must be contracted in advance. For group reservations, call (713) 510-3990.

Preservation Houston members who volunteer to assist at the show house will receive one complimentary admission for a Saturday or Sunday of their choice. To volunteer, e-mail volunteer@preservationhouston.org.

n Cynthia and Ben Guill for the renovation of and sympathetic addition to their River Oaks home, originally designed by John F. Staub in 1936. Dillon Kyle Architecture, Inc., designed the project.

n Laura and Evan Michaelides for the renovation and adaptive re-use of a Victorian cottage (c.

1905) in the First Ward.

The building now serves as the home of Bryan Four Square Design Studio, which planned the project.

n Louisa Meacham and John Faraguna for the renovation of and sympathetic addition to their Craftsman bungalow (1907) in the Woodland Heights Historic District. Troy Campa of Newberry Campa Architects designed the project.

the broadest possible selection of housing styles and housing stock is to protect the historic structures in designated districts.

The City of Houston does not impose historic district designation.

Under the historic preservation ordinance, a supermajority of property owners in a proposed district must petition the city for designation. It’s an arduous process. Property owners really have to want designation.

A 2010 study commissioned by Preservation Houston and conducted by the University of Houston Hobby Center for Public Policy found that property values in designated City of Houston historic districts were higher and that properties in historic districts held their value better than comparable properties in adjacent undesignated neighborhoods. Those findings are really only common sense: If residents are concerned enough about their neighborhood’s character to go through the designa-

Winter 2013 3

Gifts to Preservation Houston In honor of Lynne Bentsen

by Jeff Steen & Family n In honor of Patty Porter

by Julia & Robert de Berardinis n In memory of Isabel B. Wilson

by Wallace S. Wilson n

Recognize and remember friends, colleagues or loved ones with a dedicated contribution to Preservation Houston.

To donate, call (713) 510-3990 or e-mail contact@preservationhouston.org.

2013 Cornerstone Dinner Preservation Houston will present the 2013 Good Brick Awards during The Cornerstone Dinner at 7 p.m. Friday, February 28, at River Oaks Country Club, 1600 River Oaks Boulevard. Two mother/son teams are co-chairing the event: Lynne Bentsen and Clay Crawford with Helen Bering and Walter Bering.

Preservation Houston members will receive invitations closer to the event. For reservations or information, call (713) 5103990 or e-mail contact@ preservationhouston.org.

n 1101 McGowen Group Ltd. for Mongoose versus Cobra, the unique adaptation of a Midtown grocery building (1915) into a craft beer and cocktail bar. The project was designed by Ian Rosenberg and Baldemar Gonzalez. n Matt Pasternak of Pasternak Custom Homes for renovating a Georgian Revival

tion process, they are probably going to maintain their properties to higher standards, bringing up the value of surrounding properties and their neighborhood as a whole.

Houston has a unique opportunity.

Historic preservation has usually focused on 19th- and early 20thcentury cities that grew more or less organically. Today, we can help set the standard for preserving our postWorld War II architecture. Houston took a step in that direction in 2011, when homeowners in Glenbrook Valley successfully petitioned to have their 1950s neighborhood designated a city historic district.

In 1929, Hare & Hare, well-respected Kansas City planning consultants, noted in their report to the Houston Planning Commission, “Houston’s growth has been rapid and promises to increase ... the people of Houston and their officials will have to decide whether they are building a great city or merely a great population.”

make the book — and tell the stories behind them.

One Hundred Years in Pictures will be presented in Fondren Hall at St. Paul’s United Methodist Church, 5501 Main Street, at 6:30 p.m.

Tuesday, March 19. The event is free and open to the public.

For more information on the History in Print author series, visit www.preservationhouston.org.

house (1936) originally designed by Joseph Finger in the Boulevard Oaks Historic District. Architect for the project was the Eubanks Group.

Three educational projects have been selected to receive awards. Good Bricks will be presented to: n Madeleine Hussey for her personal effort to document and conserve the collection of the Weber Iron Works, which produced custom ornamental metalwork for many of Houston’s leading architects, including her grandfather, John F. Staub. n Texas Foundation for the Arts for the documentary The 1910 Harris County Courthouse, which has aired on PBS stations across Texas. n Texas Society Daughters of the American Revolution and Houston Arts & Media for the video program With Respect: Conserving Historic Cemeteries. The project was created with support from Texas Historical Commission.

Houston has succeeded in attracting a great population, but has often fallen short in protecting great places. As our economy evolves, it is becoming even more closely linked to cultural interests. Entrepreneurs, in particular, can choose where they live; their jobs are not tied to locations. They frequently make their decisions based on lifestyle and favor distinctive cities with unique character and exceptional quality of life.

Houston’s challenge is to help turn great ideas into great places — places that are whole and authentic, full of life and distinctive in character. We should continue to encourage development to enhance existing neighborhoods rather than replace them.

Great history makes great places.

Great places attract great people.

Great people create great cities.

Keynote

4 Winter 2013

Greater Houston Preservation Alliance 2012-2013 Board of Directors Officers

Patty Porter President Chip Werlein Treasurer

Jane-Page Crump President-elect

Madeleine Hamm Secretary

Eileen Hricik VP at Large

Larry E. Whaley Vice President

Nancy Ames VP/Special Events

Patricia Laurent VP at Large

Al Calloway VP/Communication

Kate McCormick VP at Large

directors

Mickey Ables Lynne Bentsen Neal D. Carlson

David Cottrell III John Cryer III Bill Franks Diane Gendel

Benito Guerrier Elizabeth Husseini Madeleine Hussey Doug Johnson

Penny Jones Deborah Keyser Nancy McGregor Manne Sarah McMullen

Diane Ofner Philip A. Williams Bradford A. Wyatt

ex officio

Charles D. Maynard, Jr. Legal Counsel

Marlene Gafrick Director, Houston Department of Planning and Development

Bart Truxillo Director Emeritus

business and not-for-profit members 1940 Air Terminal Museum Adept Word Management AIA Houston Chapter Amilee Wendt, ASID / Wendt Design Group Boulevard Oaks Ladies Club Bud Light / Silver Eagle Distributors Canyonlands Corp.

Charles W. Ligon, AIA, Architects Cinco Energy Services Cisneros Design Studio Colquitt Court Civic Club Cooke + Skidmore Consulting Corp.

Creative Property Restoration Creative Touch Interiors David Cottrell Investments E&C Engineers & Consultants Fretz Construction Company Gensler Geo. H. Lewis & Sons Glassman Shoemake Maldonado Architects, Inc. Glenwood Cemetery, Inc. Madeleine M. Hamm / Design Communications Haynes Whaley Associates, Inc. HBL Architects The Heritage Society

Jerry Hernandez / Russo Services, Inc. Historic Magnolia Brewery Building HistoryConsultants.net Houston Arts and Media Houston Mod Houston House & Home James Ray Architects Jane-Page Crump / Jane Page Design Group JD Miner Systems, LLC Kirksey Architecture The Lancaster Hotel Landmark Houston Hospitality Group Lanson B. Jones Co., Inc. Legacy Community Health Services Luxe Interiors + Design Houston Madison Benefits Group Martha Turner Properties Matrix Spencer Architects McCoy Workplace Solutions McLane Group Natalye Appel + Associates Architects Next Generation Advisors, LLC PageSoutherlandPage Past Era Antique Jewelry

Peggy Hull Interiors, LLC Pella Windows and Doors of Houston PGAL REHKA Engineering, Inc. San Jacinto Battleground Conservancy Satterfield & Pontikes Construction, Inc. Daphne Scarbrough / The Brass Maiden Schenk & Company Sibley Kopmeier Appraisal Associates Smith & Co. Architects South MacGregor Civic Club Sterling Structures, Inc. Stern and Bucek Architects Stewart Title Studio RED Architects SWCA Environmental Consultants Tellepsen Venetian Blind Carpet One W.S. Bellows Construction Ward & Ames Special Events William Reaves Fine Art, LLC William W. Stubbs & Associates Woodland Heights Civic Association Wulfe & Co. Ziegler Cooper

About Preservation Houston The mission of Preservation Houston is to promote the preservation and appreciation of Houston’s architectural and cultural historic resources through education, advocacy and committed action, thereby creating economic value and developing a stronger sense of community.

Preservation Houston is funded in part by a grant from the City of Houston through the Houston Arts Alliance.

Preservation Houston is a member of Preservation Texas and Partners for Sacred Places.

Greater Houston Preservation Alliance dba Preservation Houston. GHPA is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation.

Preservation Houston online www.preservationhouston.org @preshou Keynote David Bush, editor Jim Parsons, designer Copyright 2013, Preservation Houston.

All rights reserved.

The Cornerstone Dinner presenting the 2013 Good Brick Awards 7 p.m. Thursday, February 28, 2013 River Oaks Country Club Tickets: (713) 510-3990 or contact@preservationhouston.org

Preservation Houston 3272 Westheimer Road, Suite 2 Houston, Texas 77098-1008 Return service requested

Nonprofit Org. U.S. Postage Paid Houston, Texas Permit No. 712