IF A PROPERTY BECOMES PART OF THIS PROGRAM, IT’S THE LAST HOPE. WE’RE AT THE END OF THE LINE IN TERMS OF BEING ABLE TO SAVE THE BUILDING. — Kevin Allen, manager, Historic Curatorship Program
Gatekeepers House Lowell Heritage State Park, Lowell, Mass
Before
currently being or have been rehabbed. The Historic Curatorship Program relies
After
on regular citizens to rehabilitate and main- tain property in exchange for a long-term lease from the state. It costs curators noth- ing to live in the building, but the financial and emotional investment can be great. “If a property becomes part of this program, it’s the last hope. We’re at the end of the line in terms of being able to save the building,” explains Kevin Allen, Historic Curatorship Program manager. “For the most part, these buildings need substantial repairs, not only structural, exterior and interior details, but also wiring and plumbing. In a lot of cases, because they’re in parks, these buildings are not tied to septic systems and they have wells that have been occupied by animals for years. They need very significant work.” Despite the amount of labor these proper-
Bradley Palmer Coach House
Bradley Palmer State Park, Topsfield, Mass. Before
ties require, their histories undoubtedly make them worth the effort. For example, the Brad- ley Palmer Mansion in Bradley Palmer State Park, Topsfield, Mass., is a Tudor-Revival-style building with a unique rubble-stone exterior. Built in 1903 by Bradley Palmer, a renowned attorney and businessman who loved to en- tertain, the house has hosted distinguished guests, including President William Howard Taft and General George S. Patton, among others. When Palmer died in 1948, he left his home and 721-acre estate to Massachusetts, requesting they become a state park. After various uses, such as office and civil
After
defense training space, the mansion was boarded up and fell into a state of disrepair. It wasn’t until the right curator came along that the mansion went through a labor- intensive rehab process and is again being used in the spirit for which it was built—as an event venue called Willowdale Estate.
PHOTOS: MASSACHUSETTS DEPARTMENT OF CONSERVATION AND RECREATION
54 RETROFIT // May-June 2013
Chosen Buildings When Massachusetts passed legislation to begin the Historic Curatorship Program, it al- lowed DCR to do two things: ›› Lease state park property identified in the legislation beyond the five years typically allowed by the state.
›› Receive compensation for the lease in the form of preservation maintenance and occupancy of the property. The properties named in the 1994 leg-
islation were chosen based on a year-long survey conducted by a consulting group that profiled all the state park’s historic buildings to determine which were most in need and worthy of preserving. “The survey helped DCR determine whether the build- ing’s reuse could be compatible with the current park use and our current needs for the rest of the property, as well as whether there may be somebody who would have an interest in the property,” Allen explains. Since the legislation passed, there have
been six amendments adding properties to the Historic Curatorship Program. “The properties added later are based on new discoveries or cases in which a plan to reha- bilitate a building for park use fell through,” Allen remarks. “When our agency merged with the Boston parks system a new variety of property opportunities became available, and we added about 15 properties in the metropolitan Boston area to the legislation a couple years ago.” The range of properties within the pro-
gram is diverse, spanning Massachusetts’ history and various architectural styles. “About half the properties are residential and have residential uses,” Allen says. “The rest are used by non-profits and for-profit businesses.” For example, Bascom Lodge is a for-profit business, providing food, lodging and programs at the top of Mt. Greylock in the Berkshires. Another project, the former office building for the Baker Chocolate Fac- tory, which during the early 20th century was the largest factory in the world, has been converted into artists’ lofts by a for- profit real-estate management company. The program’s most recent lease is for a 30- by 20-foot 1880s life-saving station on Mas- sachusetts’ south coast; a non-profit will be restoring and preserving it. The fact that the Historic Curatorship
Program’s 20th lease was signed only re- cently is an indication of how intense the
›››
›››
›››
›››
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84