PRESERVATION KENTUCKY PROGRAMS
Preservation Kentucky is committed to sponsoring innovative educational programming throughout the Commonwealth. In addition to the programs highlighted below, PK is planning to hold several educational and networking events across Kentucky in 2011. Topics are currently being discussed and selected, however, any input you may have would be welcomed. You can send your ideas to us at: info@preservationkentucky.org.

Preservation Kentucky offers technical assistance to individuals, nonprofits, local and state governments on important preservation projects and topics. Examples of this include PK's efforts to assist the Penn Store in Gravel Switch and the local effort to preserve the Pennington House in London - to name a few.

Established Programs include:

The Rural Heritage Development Initiative (RHDI) began in 2006 as a three-year demonstration program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, in collaboration with the Kentucky Heritage Council. The RHDI was intended to help develop and implement preservation-based economic development strategies in the eight-county Central Kentucky area of Boyle, Green, LaRue, Marion, Mercer, Nelson, Taylor and Washington. The RHDI was one of two pilot programs in the country, the other located in the Arkansas Delta.

Since this time, the RHDI has expanded field services and technical support to rural areas across the state. Staffing is now provided with the assistance of the National Trust for Historic Preservation's Robert Wilson Challenge Grant. Key programming includes barn preservation, revitalization help for small communities, heritage tourism support, and much more. For more information, please contact Amy Potts, Rural Heritage Programs Director, amy@preservationkentucky.org.

The KY Historic Preservation Legislative Summit is a biennial gathering that happens at the KY State Capitol, several months prior to the budget session of the KY Legislature.  Main Street managers, archaelogists, community preservationists, and planners come together to discuss development and enhancement of historic preservation policy in the Commonwealth.  One goal behind this summit is to have grassroots input and build consensus on PK's legislative platform.  Another goal is to identify key issues impacting historic preservation practice and develop strategies to resolve them.  For more information on the 2011 summit, click here.  Historic Preservation Lobby Day is planned for January 26 2012.

The Photo-Essay Competition is an annual program sponsored in partnership with the Kentucky Heritage Council. This effort engages primary and secondary school students in a theme related to historic preservation. Students work with a teacher to select, photograph, and write about historic places in their communities and explain why they believe them to be significant and worthy of preservation.

The 2011 Photo Essay Competition Ceremony was held Tuesday, May 24 in conjunction with the annaul Ida Lee Willis Awards.  Preservation in Your Community: From Endangered to Enlivened was the theme of the 13th Annual Statewide Photo-Essay Competition, through which students were asked to take at least three photos and write an essay demonstrating an example of preservation in their city, town, neighborhood or rural area, highlighting a historic building or site that was previously endangered by demolition, an act of nature or neglect and how that threat was resolved. Factors such as the importance of the building or site to the community's sense of place and history, as well as the steps the owner/community had to take to preserve the building or site, were to be considered in the essay.

Students were also required to submit a copy of their essay to at least one local decision-maker, such as a mayor or judge-executive, with a goal to stimulate young peoples’ interest in historic preservation and provide an opportunity for them to interact with local leaders regarding its importance to their community.

This year, presentation of the student photo-essay awards is sponsored in part by Community Trust Bank. 13th Annual Statewide Photo-Essay Competition award winners are:

High School Division (Grades 9-12)

First Place: Andrew Segal, 11th Grade

DuPont Manual High School, Louisville

Helping Everybody by Helping Yourself

Middle School Division (Grades 6-8)

First Place: Mason Miller, 6th grade

Harlan Independent Schools

Putney Ranger Station

Elementary School Division (Grades 1-5)

First Place: Drayden Zaring, 5th grade

Holy Trinity School, Prospect

The Henry Clay Hotel

For more information or a copy of these essays, contact Rachel Kennedy, Preservation Kentucky executive director, at 502-871-4570 or email director@preservationkentucky.org.

Kentucky's Most Endangered List is an biennial listing of historic or prehistoric places endangered due to neglect, potential for demolition, and/or a lack of understanding of their cultural and historic value. The list is intended to provide property owners of endangered sites with technical preservation assistance. It is also meant to educate all Kentuckians about similar threats and provide case studies regarding how these threats might be dealt with effectively.

Just in time for Historic Preservation Month in May, Preservation Kentucky began announcing the 2011-2012 Endangered List. The 2011 list will focus on themes, rather than particular sites. So, an endangered listing might spotlight a number of houses threatened by demolition and how they relate to an overarching theme, such as the demolition of historic houses for downtown parking. 

The Kentucky State Historic Preservation Conference is a biennial educational event co-sponsored with the Kentucky Heritage Council. Preservation Kentucky has been a partner in this effort since 2000. In 1986, the Kentucky Heritage Council held the first statewide conference to focus attention on historic preservation efforts throughout Kentucky and to provide technical assistance and training to local organizations and community leaders. Since that time, the conference has taken place in various communities across Kentucky, including Louisville, Lexington, Bowling Green, Frankfort, Bardstown, Danville, and Covington. Historic places in each of these locations have served as the meeting backdrop to highlight successes and issues in preservation as well as provide a venue for Kentuckians to learn from guest speakers and presenters from other states and countries.

In 2010, Preservation Kentucky and the Kentucky Heritage Council sponsored the first state historic preservation conference in Frankfort, and the first state conference in partnership with the International Preservation Trades Network. As the state's historic preservation nonprofit, Preservation Kentucky understands the vital importance of a meeting combining the preservation trades with folks who lobby, educate, and invest to preserve our communities' important heritage. These two groups cannot accomplish the lofty goal of preservation without each others' skills and commitment to the built environment. The breadth of these dual conferences made for a greater learning experience for all!

The 2012 State Preservation Conference is currently being planned. Preservation Kentucky is taking proposals to host the 2012 Historic Preservation Conference. The conference typically attacts between 250-500 people. For more information, click here.

The Ida Lee Willis Memorial Preservation Awards are presented each May, in observance of National Historic Preservation Month, in conjunction with the Ida Lee Willis Memorial Foundation and the Kentucky Heritage Council. These awards recognize those who have demonstrated an understanding of and an appreciation of the value of preserving and reusing Kentucky's historic and prehistoric resources, whether through the restoration of an important structure or community resource or through a lifetime commitment to encouraging and promoting historic preservation. The awards are named for the late Ida Lee Willis, who was appointed first executive director of the Kentucky Heritage Commission (now the Kentucky Heritage Council) in 1966.

The Ida Lee Willis Memorial Award is presented to the individual who has demonstrated outstanding dedication to the cause of historic preservation in the Commonwealth. The 2011 recipient is Robert M. “Bob” Polsgrove of Frankfort, retired president of the Kentucky Trust for Historic Preservation, who is being honored for his life’s work in preservation, advocacy efforts and leadership of the Kentucky Trust, which commits funds and uses hands-on approaches to save Kentucky's endangered buildings and sites.

Preservation Project Awards recognize outstanding examples of restoration or rehabilitation of historic buildings, or other types of projects that have had a positive impact on Kentucky’s built environment. 2011 winners are:

 •Eastside Revitalization Project, Covington, spearheaded by The Model Group, in recognition of its partnership with the city to take on a major revitalization effort of more than 70 abandoned and neglected buildings and rehabilitating nearly 40 of these to date, with the goal of transforming vacant historic buildings into updated, affordable housing while preserving their historic fabric.

  •Louisville Water Company Pump Station 1 and owner Louisville Water Company, for its commitment to complete a full exterior restoration of the Greek Revival-style pump station utilizing historic drawings and original materials and methods, with the goal to minimize maintenance, stay true to the historic nature of the building and extend the life of this iconic structure.

•West-Metcalfe House, Mill Springs Battlefield, Wayne County, and the Mill Springs Battlefield Association, in recognition of its commitment to preserve and painstakingly restore the first brick house in the Wayne County region, which tells the story of local families and served as a Civil War hospital but which in recent years had literally begun crumbling from decades of decay and neglect.

 Service to Preservation Awards honor those who have furthered historic preservation activities or have had a positive impact in their communities, including individuals, organizations, public officials, financial institutions, news media, and/or volunteers. 2011 winners are:

 •The Landmark Association of Bowling Green and Warren County, for 35 years of dedication to preserving the historic fabric of the community of Bowling Green and all of Warren County, through diverse efforts including advocacy, education, fundraising, cultural heritage interpretation and hands-on training.

 •Lynda Closson, Stanford, for her many years of leadership and commitment to preserving and rehabilitating historic Duncan Tavern and other community preservation projects.

  •Donna Horn-Taylor, Laurel County; and Julie Nelson Harris, editor, Tara Kaprowy and Nita Johnson, reporters, London Sentinel Echo, in recognition of their efforts to save and preserve the historic Pennington House in downtown London – despite its eventual demolition – and in the process raising awareness and educating the community about why the preservation of historic buildings is important to quality of life, community pride and economic development.

For more information about recipients or projects, contact Diane Comer, 502-564-7005, ext. 120 or email diane.comer@ky.gov.

Application for nominations for the 2012 Ida Lee Willis Awards will be available in early 2012. We encourage you to recognize the preservation heroes and heroines in your community.