NOW OPEN: Nominations 2017 Historic Preservation Awards

Nominations requested for Historic Preservation Awards 03-14-2017 at 3:19:46 PM  Source: City of Mesa Newsroom       The City's Historic Preservation Board continues to seek nominations for Mesa's Historic Preservation Awards for Outstanding Achievement.  Nominations must be submitted by Monday, April 24 at 6 p.m. The awards, which can be presented to an individual, group or organization, are in the categories of Archaeology, Adaptive Reuse, Education and Outreach, Landscape Preservation, Local Preservationist, Rehabilitation and Restoration, Individual Lifetime Achievement and Stewardship.  The 2017 recipients will be honored at a City Council meeting in June.Any individual is welcome to submit a nomination. If you have questions about completing a nomination, contact Mesa Planning Director John Wesley at (480) 644-2181 or john.wesley@mesaaz.gov. Nomination forms are available online at www.mesaaz.gov/about-us/historic-preservation. Since 1998, the City has recognized more than 50 citizens for their contributions to historic preservation in Mesa. Public Information and Communications Contact: Kevin Christopher Tel. 480-644-4699kevin.christopher@mesaaz.gov   One outstanding potential nominee Historic Preservation and Adaptive Re-Use: A Delicate Balance by Alisa Petterson | Jan 8, 2017 | Newsletter | 0 comments “When you strip away the rhetoric, preservation is simply having the good sense to hold on to things that are well designed, that link us with our past in a meaningful way, and that have plenty of good use left in them.”~ Richard Moe, National Trust for Historic Preservation Preservation and/or rehabilitation of our significant historic buildings is incredibly important. In their glory days, these buildings were symbolic of progression towards a bright future; today they are windows to the past and a lasting connection to city legacies. One such building in Mesa, Arizona  is the Historic Post Office, also known as the “Federal Building”. As indicated in Mesa’s Historic Property List: “The Federal Building was built in 1937 by the Federal Government Department of Treasury to become Mesa’s first 1st-class post office, and was one of the finest buildings in the City at its completion.” Through the years,the post office experienced a series of modifications and functions. The federal government’s most recent use of the building was to house the local U.S. Forest Service offices before the building was transferred to City of Mesa ownership and was subsequently recorded on Mesa’s Historic Property Register in 2004. An adaptive reuse of this historically significant building has been planned by the City along with the architectural team of Saemisch Di Bella Architects and Historic Streetscapes, led by Ron Peters AIA, who is a preservation architect. Current plans are in flux . . . One of the projects in their extensive portfolio is the Mesa Center for Higher Education with a project date of 2012-2013   SDA’s Mesa Downtown Adaptive Reuse Project. Saemisch Di Bella Architects built our business on producing sensitive adaptive-reuse projects, and we’re proud to have completed a number of these in our own historic downtown including the building we own and occupy at 48 W. Main Street. Built in 1895 and originally known as the Barnett Building, it’s one of the oldest in the area. Other projects completed include the Arizona Museum of Natural History, the C.W. Berge Building, the Nile Theater, and the offices at 101 W. Main, as well as tenant improvements for Sweet Cakes Café and Nunthaporn’s Thai Cuisine restaurant. For those interested in the history of Mesa’s downtown, please check out the Mesa Historical Museum website, Source: http://www.adaptivearchitectsinc.com/understanding-the-background-of-architecture-industry/