Statewide Preservation Conference

Save the dates, June 4-6, 2014, for Historic Preservation ABCs: Oklahoma’s 26th Annual Statewide Preservation Conference. Plan to enroll for historic preservation summer school in Norman on the University of Oklahoma campus.

The three courses of study include:
TRACK A: Academic Pursuits. This track focuses on Norman’s and the state’s architectural legacy; research collections and tools for historic preservation; and a half-day visit to the Oklahoma Archeological Survey to tour the archeological laboratories and learn about current field work, research projects and cooperative efforts with the SHPO and the Oklahoma Department of Transportation, Cultural Resource Program.

TRACK B: Back to Basics. This track includes an introduction to the National Register of Historic Places and the Secretary of the Interior’s Rehabilitation Standards; rehabilitation project case studies of all sizes; and highlights of how the arts and historic preservation combine to promote community revitalization.

TRACK C: Comprehensive Community Preservation. This track features two workshops. First is the National Alliance of Preservation Commission’s one-and-a-half-day Community Assistance Mentoring Program (CAMP) for design review commissions and local government staff. Second is a half-day workshop about heritage areas and corridors and how they support economic development and heritage tourism, presented by Elizabeth Watson, Heritage Strategies LLC.

Special events include the opening reception on Main Street in historic downtown Norman; local tours; Preservation Oklahoma, Inc.’s annual meeting and luncheon; the State Historic Preservation Office’s annual awards banquet; and the Plenary Session, featuring Linda Caldwell, executive director of the Tennessee Overhill Heritage Association, who will deliver a lively discussion about how small towns can realize economic benefits and strengthen rural heritage tourism programs through spin-off from nearby, larger cities.

Conference cosponsors include the State Historic Preservation Office, Oklahoma Historical Society; Oklahoma Main Street Center, Oklahoma Department of Commerce; Preservation Oklahoma, Inc.; University of Oklahoma, College of Architecture, Institute for Quality Communities; Campus Corner Merchants Association; City of Norman; Cleveland County Historical Society; Norman Arts Council; Norman Chamber of Commerce; Norman Convention and Visitors Bureau; Norman Downtowners; and Oklahoma Archeological Survey.

Full conference program and registration information will be available in late April. Follow conference developments at
http://www.okhistory.org/shpo/conference.htm; http://www.facebook.com/okshpo; http://www.twitter.com/okshpo; and http://www.okpreservationconference.wordpress.com.

For more information, contact Melvena Heisch, deputy SHPO, at 405-522-4484 or mheisch@okhistory.org, or Umit Hope Mander, associate director of the Institute for Quality Communities at the University of Oklahoma College of Architecture, at 405-325-2434 or umander@ou.edu.