Nobody knows Colorado like its residents, so Colorado Preservation is asking for the public's input on which places in the state are endangered and in need of saving.
Online submissions for Colorado's Most Endangered Places are due by Monday, August 14. A team from Colorado Preservation, Inc., will then decide on a final list and announce which sites will receive their support, at the four-day Saving Places Conference in February 2018.
Each year, a handful of endangered places are selected by the group, who then works to "promote historic preservation statewide through advocacy, education, outreach, and preservation services to communities and individuals."
The goal is to find the places that best represent the two primary listing criteria: historic significance and the threat of being lost. But more than just meeting the criteria, the review committees are seeking to find the places that matter; those that tell a story by servicing as the physical representation of some period in history," the organization's website states.
The selected sites for 2017 were
Centre Avenue (Weld County),
Temple Aaron (Las Animas County), and
World’s Wonder View Tower (Lincoln County), which you may have seen in the distance if you've ever traveled through Colorado's eastern plains on I-70.
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Since 1997, Colorado Preservation has successfully saved
more than 33 sites, including the Colorado Capitol Dome, which was nominated in 2010 after a 10-pound chunk of cast iron crumbled off, creating a danger to those on the ground. Extensive repairs were completed in 2014.
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The Colorado Capitol Dome was successfully restored. The project was completed in 2014.[/caption]
Another notable "save" was the Georgetown School, which was nominated in 2006. Because of the awareness that the Colorado Preservation nomination brought to the school building, grants and funds were awarded, allowing for the building to undergo structural reinforcement, asbestos abatement, compression grouting, restoration of the exterior, restoration of the historic exterior paint colors, and reconstruction of the two vent towers and the bell tower based on archival photographs. Everything was completed by 2009.
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The Georgetown School, restoration of which was completed in 2009.[/caption]
Pretty much we rely on the public to let us know what's threatened," said Jennifer Orrigo Charles, Executive Director of Colorado Preservation. "Usually it's places they believe are too important to lose."
So, do you know of a Colorado gem in need of some TLC? Submit your nomination through August 14 on
Colorado Preservation's website, and let's keep Colorado's history intact!
Featured image of Redstone Castle, which was "saved" in 2006. All images courtesy of Colorado Preservation, Inc.
