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About the Editor
Lindsey Wallace serves as the primary donor relations contact for stewardship of easements at the Trust for Architectural Easements. She reviews alteration projects for easement donors and assists with management of the Trust's annual monitoring process. She also works in education outreach, with activities including Open House New York tours and lessons at Bancroft Elementary School in Northwest DC. Lindsey has a master's degree historic preservation planning from Cornell University and a bachelor's degree in history from The Ohio State University. Her strong interest in sustainability, particularly in how it relates to reuse of the built environment, inspires her work in Reduce, Reuse, Rehab. By demonstrating that building rehabilitation is sustainability in practice, preservationists have an exciting opportunity - and responsibility - to join in the efforts to create a more environmentally conscious world.
Back Issues
February 2010: Monahan Building, the Hotchkiss School, Lakeville, Connecticut |
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A sense of physical place can factor significantly in memory, particularly when associated with the formative years spent in school. The buildings in which young people learn often remain inextricably linked to the educational lessons themselves. When several Hotchkiss School alumni and trustees, including Forrest Mars, Jr. (class of 1949) and John L. Thornton (class of 1972), led the effort to rehabilitate the vacant, historic Monahan gymnasium, they not only helped achieve the preservation of this sense of place, but also a LEED Gold-certified adaptive reuse project. . |
January 2010: Green Rehabilitation - the BNN Charles J. Beard II Media Center |
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The green rehabilitation of a historic structure can be quite complex, particularly if the building is large and in serious disrepair. Such was the situation facing the Boston Neighborhood Network (BNN) and Urban Edge when they undertook the large-scale rehabilitation of the former Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) substation in the Roxbury neighborhood of Boston, Mass. |
December 2009: New Insulation Options for a Greener Historic Home |
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While the energy efficiency benefits of insulation are easily achieved, not all types of insulation are equally healthy choices – for the building’s inhabitants or the buildings themselves. How can historic-building owners choose the least harmful products while further practicing environmental sustainability with their insulation solutions? Luckily, many new insulation products exist that achieve energy efficiency with natural and recycled materials, such as cotton, hemp, and paper. |
November 2009: Using Sustainable Sources of Wood in Historic Home Maintenance |
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Historic-home inhabitants know that wood elements require maintenance from time to time. The cornice may rot over time, or pieces of the stairway balustrade may become significantly damaged. If a historic-building inhabitant is unable to repair the wood element, and needs to replace it – either in part or in total – how does s/he make the most healthy and environmentally sustainable choice? Two of the most common environmentally sustainable choices are certified sustainable wood and reclaimed wood. |
October 2009: Exploring Cultural and Economic Sustainability through Heritage Tourism |
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In investigating heritage tourism, we can see how preservation of existing resources provides the present generation opportunities to meet their cultural and economic needs while maintaining them for future use. While heritage tourism is not the only method by which preservation’s sustainable benefits can be examined, it does illustrate the benefits most clearly. |
September 2009: Green Cleaning in Your Historic Home |
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Historic buildings are natural allies of the sustainability movement. They are typically long-lasting, built of durable materials, and designed for passive heating, cooling, and ventilation. Reusing old buildings cuts down on the landfill waste, carbon emissions, and gasoline required for new construction. But, for a truly sustainable lifestyle, it is not enough just to inhabit a rehabilitated historic building. The building must be taken care of - cleaned, maintained, renovated when necessary - in a sustainable way that will be as friendly to the environment and to the building's users as is the building itself. |
August 2009: The American Clean Energy and Security Act and Historic Preservation |
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On June 26, 2009, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 2454, the American Clean Energy and Security Act (ACES), also known as the Waxman-Markey Bill, with a vote of 219-212. Known for its "cap and trade" and "cash for clunkers" programs, ACES covers a wide scope of climate change and energy topics, a scope that has been both praised and criticized. As we often discuss in this newsletter, sensible rehabilitation of historic and existing structures can lead to improvements in energy efficiency and also reduce construction waste expended by the United States. |
July 2009: Architectural Salvage Stores |
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Architectural salvage stores offer an environmentally friendly way to complete home renovations. Salvage shops reduce the amount of waste sent to landfills. According to the EPA, debris from building construction - including manufacturing new materials and the disposal of waste from demolished buildings - accounts for roughly one-third of all waste generated in the U.S. |
June 2009: Reduce Your Energy Consumption This Summer |
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As the heat and humidity of summer fast approach, we all need to think about how we will reduce our energy consumption and costs. In this economic climate, creative and simple methods are attractive and often the most effective. In the absence or rarity of mechanical temperature control, architects and builders of ages past designed and planned for natural heating and cooling, or passive temperature control. |
May 2009: Historic Preservation and the Green Rehabilitation of Affordable Housing |
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In efforts to green residential structures, there has been a particular focus in assisting lower income families in retrofitting their homes for energy efficiency. By weatherstripping older windows, adding insulation, and using energy efficient appliances, people living in historic or older buildings can save money on monthly energy bills and create healthier living environments. |
April 2009: LEED-EB:O&M An Acronym To Take Advantage Of |
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But if you are the owner of an existing building and wish to lessen operation costs and increase your building’s marketability, or if you would just like to help save the environment-at-large, let me suggest an acronym that may be particularly beneficial to your interests: LEED-EB:O&M (http://www.usgbc.org/leed/eb). It stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design – Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance, a section of the initiative to promote sustainable building practices in the United States by the U.S. Green Building Council, or, the USGBC. |
March 2009: Simple Retrofits Lower Your Energy Consumption and Costs |
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This issue of Reduce, Reuse, Rehab will delve into the inherently sustainable characteristics of historic buildings and examine elements that can be retrofi tted most easily, inexpensively, and sustainably: windows and insulation. |
February 2009: Historic Buildings are Green |
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Historic preservation is fundamentally sustainable in that its practice uses existing built resources and encourages reinvestment in older communities. The Trust for Architectural Easements actively seeks to incorporate the principles of sustainability into its work practices and in its own offi ce environment. To demonstrate our dedication to this mission, we are issuing Reduce, Reuse, Rehab, a series of monthly briefs that discuss various topics connected to the relationship between sustainability and preservation. |