Ralph,

I am not concerned about passive demolition by government possession. I 
am concerned about active demolition by a well-meaning but not very 
well-informed system of letting out work to low and often unqualified 
bid. You know this as well as me. My start here was someone with a 
comment - in the field - that they assumed their historic structure 
would now be saved since it was being handed over to the City 
government. I don't see it as realistic to hand over responsibility with 
an assumption that there will be a de facto equal or higher level of 
care. Further on in the week it became evident that I was talking to a 
zooney toone who spent a great deal of time to tell everyone 
(architects, engineers, consultants etc.) about the non-gender specific 
squirrels copulating under the trees in the yard, and that there is in 
place a well reasoned plan of balances and relationships in place to 
assure that there will be folks who DO CARE about the structure to see 
to it that it is not in future mauled and tormented by wood butchers and 
hacks, as it has been in the past.

As to who cares... I don't believe that to treat skilled trades in the 
'industrial' model of them being interchangeable commodities is the most 
intelligent manner in which to approach alterations and repairs to 
historic structures. I do not think that I am trying to say anything new 
here as much as trying to figure out what words to say to describe what 
we already feel. How do you get experienced, qualified, curious, 
mechanics who care about what they are working on, who understand or at 
least appreciate the significance of the historic fabric, to work on an 
historic structure, as opposed to a gaggle of morons? You certainly do 
not increase the chances of getting what you want insofar as quality of 
care in the mechanic by subjecting the structure to the public bid process.

][<en

[log in to unmask] wrote:

> * I suppose passive demolition by governmental neglect is better than 
> outright demolition by a private owner, though.
> *

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