This year’s conference brought together preservationists, advocates, students, and skilled tradespeople from across the State. With 164 attendees, jam-packed sessions and lively social events, the three-day event delivered both substance and spirit.

The conference kicked off Thursday at the Wheeling Artisan Center with an opening reception and student showcase featuring work from Belmont College’s Building Preservation and Restoration Program. Wheeling Mayor Denny Magruder welcomed everyone and set the tone for a weekend of collaboration, craft, and community. Later that night, the Limeburn social at the historic Kraft House on Wheeling Island gave attendees a chance to unwind. PAWV Board Member Jon Smith brought the evening to life with firelight, hands-on history, and great stories. No surprise it was voted the weekend’s “most fun” event!

Dr. Matt Wagner of Main Street America (pictured above), drawing on his private sector insight, inspired Awards Banquet attendees with stories and examples that showed how big ideas about place-based revitalization and creative thinking can spark real change right here in West Virginia, leaving the audience energized and ready to make a difference.

Tickets for the tours and Awards Banquet sold out before registration even closed! Attendees explored Wheeling’s historic districts and Mt. Wood Cemetery, along with fan favorites like the Grave Creek Mound and Cockayne Farmstead in Marshall County. Oglebay Resort’s Glessner Auditorium provided the perfect setting for the Awards Banquet, which was a heartfelt celebration of leaders like Lifetime Achievement Award honoree, Jeanne Finstein of Wheeling and many others whose work continues to shape preservation across our state.

West Virginians are invited to celebrate their historic preservation success stories through the Preservation Alliance of West Virginia’s new West Virginia Preservation Spotlight series. ​

​The Preservation Alliance of West Virginia honored historic preservation award recipients on Saturday, September 30th, during its 9th annual awards banquet.  The event was held at the Municipal Auditorium in Charleston and featured keynote speaker, Patrick Seymour, of the Theatre Historical Society of America.  Delegate Larry Rowe was the Master of Ceremonies, and Mr. Brooks McCabe was a special guest speaker discussing the importance of advocating for the state and federal historic tax credits.  It was a wonderful evening enjoyed by all.  

For those unable to attend, we have put together a series of videos recognizing each of the award recipients.  Scroll down to view the videos.

Thank you to the award recipients for their tireless efforts in preserving our Mountain State's heritage!  Keep up the great work!

​The Preservation Alliance of WV honored preservationists from across the state during the 8th Annual Historic Preservation Awards Banquet held at Halliehurst Mansion in Elkins on Friday, September 23, 2016.  This year’s event is part of the statewide historic preservation conference “This Place Matters” being held in Beverly and Elkins.  “Historic preservation award recipients are nominated by local community residents and selected through a competitive application process.  The winners are some of the most notable historic preservation projects in the state for 2016,” explained Danielle LaPresta, Executive Director for the Preservation Alliance of West Virginia.

The 2016 Historic Preservation Award Winners are:

Landscape Preservation Award – Rich Mountain Battlefield Foundation for the preservation of Rich Mountain Battlefield in Randolph County.

Downtown Preservation Award – MountainPlex Properties for undertaking multiple historic preservation and re-use projects in historic Hinton, including the Ritz Theatre and the McCreery Hotel.

Cultural Preservation Award – Davis and Elkins College for its development of the Center for Railway Tourism and the preservation of multiple historic buildings on campus, including Halliehurst Mansion and Graceland Inn and Conference Center.

Rodney Collins Preservation Achievement Award – Toni Ogden of Lewisburg for her efforts in preserving historic cemeteries.

Preservation Achievement Award – Main Street Ripley for the Alpine Theatre restoration project.

Preservation Alliance of West Virginia (PAWV) is accepting nominations for the 2017 West Virginia Historic Preservation Awards.

The 9th Annual Historic Preservation Awards Banquet will be on Saturday, September 30, 2017, at the Municipal Auditorium in Charleston.

Download the PAWV Awards Nomination Form 2017 Here!

Guidelines:

• All nominations are due July 31, 2017 (Monday).
• Submit completed nomination form via email to [email protected].
• Submit at least 3 photos – larger than 1 MB in size – of the project nomination with your nomination form.

A special nominating committee consisting of PAWV board members and staff will select and notify the awardees, as well as the nominators of the nomination status.  All are welcome to submit nominations and attend the banquet. Nominators can submit more than one nomination but must submit one nomination per award.  For information on award recipients from previous years, visit http://pawv.org/awards.htm.
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Download the PAWV Awards Nomination Form 2017 Here!   

By Danielle LaPresta Parker

​This week, the Preservation Alliance of WV received a $15,000 grant from the 1772 Foundation to conduct a revolving fund feasibility study.  The 1772 Foundation, based in Newport, RI, is a national leader in the field of historic properties redevelopment programs. Many non-profit historic preservation organizations establish historic property redevelopment revolving funds to receive donations and other capital, which are used by the organization to either make loans for building renovations or purchase endangered properties that are then resold with easements.  The organization earns either loan repayments or property sales to replenish the revolving fund and continue to redevelop properties across the state. The feasibility study is the first step in the process of developing a historic properties redevelopment program and will help to determine what kind of program will be most effective in West Virginia. “We are thrilled at having this opportunity to start a fresh program in the Mountain State focusing on developing existing cultural assets and are very thankful for the 1772 Foundation’s grant to us,” explained Executive Director Danielle LaPresta Parker.

According to the 1772 Foundation, Executive Director Mary Anthony, “Historic properties redevelopment programs, sometimes known as revolving funds, greatly increase the number of historic buildings we can save and put back into use by the community. Unlike more reactive, traditional preservation models, they are proactive and robust; they move at the speed of the market, using the same tools and financing as for-profit developers. The 1772 Foundation awards grants for real estate education, fellowships, feasibility studies, and business plans in addition to increasing the capacity of existing programs through grants and loans to help grow this increasingly important sector of the historic preservation field.”

Danforth Ely, president of The 1772 Foundation, noted, “We have been promoting the relationship between historic properties redevelopment programs and economic development for many years. I am happy to note that almost half of this year’s grant recipients are receiving 1772 funding for the first time.”

Other grant recipients were the Newport County Development Council ($15,0000, Preserve Rhode Island ($30,000), the Providence Revolving Fund ($75,000), Cincinnati Preservation Association ($15,000); Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation ($37,500); Fairmount Park Conservancy in Philadelphia, PA ($30,000); Germantown United Community Development Corporation also in Philadelphia ($50,000); Heritage Works in Dubuque, IA ($25,000); Historic Columbia Foundation ($15,000); Landmarks Illinois ($15,000); Louisiana Preservation Alliance ($75,000); Maine Preservation ($60,000); Michigan Historic Preservation Network ($75,000); Montana Preservation Alliance ($50,000); National Main Street Center in Chicago, IL ($135,000 – two projects), National Trust for Historic Preservation in Washington, DC ($225,000 – three projects); Preservation Alliance of New Orleans ($50,000); Preservation Maryland ($20,000); Preservation Massachusetts ($37,500); Restore Mobile ($25,000); The L’Enfant Trust in Washington, DC ($100,000); and Waterfront Historic Area League (WHALE) in New Bedford, MA ($150,000).

​The 1772 Foundation was named in honor of its first restoration project, Liberty Hall in Union, NJ, which was built in 1772 and is the ancestral home of the Livingston and Kean families. The late Stewart B. Kean was the original benefactor of The 1772 Foundation. The 1772 Foundation works to ensure the safe passage of our historic buildings and farmland to future generations. More information about The 1772 Foundation may be found at www.1772foundation.org.

The Preservation Alliance of WV is the statewide nonprofit dedicated to historic preservation.  Started in 1982, the Preservation Alliance of WV promotes the re-use of cultural resources.  It administers the Preserve WV AmeriCorps program and the WV Endangered Properties List.

This year, the Preservation Alliance of WV nominated Curt Mason, of Charles Town.  Since joining the Preservation Alliance of WV Board of Directors in 2011, Curt has worked to make PAWV’s activities more successful.  He has opened his beautiful, historic home in Jefferson County for a PAWV fundraisier and has also invited PAWV to use his home for other fundraising activities, such as hosting PAWV’s quarterly board meeting and fundraising work days.  In addition, Mason works to make PAWV’s name better-known not only in the eastern panhandle but state-wide and nationally.  He represented PAWV at the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s conference and at the Preservation Action annual meeting in November 2015.  He sits on various PAWV committees including the advocacy committee and helps in selecting the WV Endangered Properties List each year.

Curt brings several valuable tools to the preservation table.  For example, he has worked for five years in Jefferson County identifying issues that PAWV may address in Jefferson County.  He is a tireless promoter of historic preservation.  To his contact list of over 1,000 people, Curt shares PAWV news and announcements, which helps to increase our reach to people not already involved in the organization.  Curt has also helped in coordinating historic windows workshops to benefit the old Yellow House on the campus of Shepherd University.  Curt helped to organize the initial two-day workshop and ensured that the windows were restored after an accident occurred that postponed the completion of the windows work.  Curt is dedicated to enhancing historic preservation through his board position by utilizing PAWV staff services for historic properties in Jefferson County. Thank you, Curt!