This October 2-6, 2007 Saint Paul, Minnesota will be hosting the National Preservation Conference and we will be attending on behalf of the Wilson Hotel rehabilitation project. The conference theme this year is “Preservation Matters!” This conference is sponsored by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
The conference is the premier preservation conference in the United States for professionals in preservation and allied fields – including historic building owners like us. According to the conference agenda, this conference brings together experts and practitioners in the diverse specialties that contribute to preservation – architecture & cultural landscapes, historic sites & heritage tourism (which Centralia is promoting with vigor), heritage education, downtown revitalization (kudos to the new Centralia Downtown Association), neighborhood revitalization (think Edison District), real estate development and more!
The Expo at the conference will feature vendors that focus on providing services and products to the target audience attending the conference. In addition to attending the Expo, we will be attending a slew of workshops and focus forums discussing matters relating to our preservation and rehabilitation project. There are three full days of conference educational sessions to choose from. The conference also hosts several networking sessions to connect with others who are on their own preservation journey.
One of the most popular workshop sessions is the Historic Tax Credits – Turning Credits into Cash. This course covers the nuts and bolts of maximizing the federal tax credit program for historic building owners. We are excited to attend the workshops on Heritage Tourism, Building Public Will for Preservation, Using LEED Guidelines for Historic Preservation and the three workshops regarding reuse of historic properties.
If you have a heart for historic preservation ~ perhaps you will join us in St. Paul for the National Preservation Conference in October. We hope to see you there! For more conference information visit http://www.nationaltrust.org
