Just a quick link to my interview with Devin Colman the State Historic Preservation specialist that is helping the University of Vermont put together this years Symposium on Modern Architecture which will take place Friday, June 25 the day before the PB Homes Tour.
Preservation Burlington announces its Annual Homes Tour
Preservation Burlington is pleased to announce that the 2010 Homes Tour will be held on Saturday June 26th from 12-4 pm.Tickets are available at the Flynn Center box Office (www.flynntix.org) for $20. The tickets cannot be purchased at the homes.
Included on this year’s tour are modernist structures from the recent past located in our Queen City.The tour will consist of various homes and public spaces with styles popular after World War II.This era of design abandoned traditional theories on architecture and created a new, austere, geometric aesthetic that’s influence can still be seen in contemporary designs.Feature homes are structures of the International Style and the Prairie Style.Join us during the tour at the Spot, originally built in the 1950’s as a Phillips 66 gas station and recently renovated and adapted to a surf-style restaurant.Light refreshments will be provided.
This year’s event will coincide with a day-long symposium, “Modernist Architecture Comes of Age.”This symposium will be held on June 25th and was organized by the University of Vermont Historic Preservation Department and the Vermont Department for Historic Preservation.Key speakers are from National Historic Preservation Organizations, including the Recent Past Preservation Network and the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
The tours are self-guided with the help of numerous volunteers from the community.The Preservation Burlington Homes Tour is a major fundraising event in which proceeds will go toward developing additional programs.
This year’s tour is happening on June 26 and focuses on mid-century modernist homes in our community. We chose the theme of ‘modernist’ structures to coincide with a day long symposium being held at the University of Vermont by the UVM Historic Preservation Program and the Vermont State Department of Historic Preservation (http://www.uvm.edu/~modern/).
Modernist structures are primarily buildings designed after the turn of the century that abandon traditional aesthetics in architecture and focus on geometric, austere forms that use modern materials. The style was popular in the United States after WWII. The styles that fit into this category are ‘Arts and Crafts’, the ‘prairie style’ coined by Frank Lloyd Wright, the ‘International Style’ and the ‘Streamline Moderne’ style (a good example would be diners and gas stations of the 50’s and 60’s). As these structures age, there is a growing need to preserve this important time in history and in architectural design and theory. There are national organization dedicated to this effort including the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the Recent Past Preservation Network. There also is a growing interest in the design aesthetic of this period which can be seen in many of the contemporary, ’sustainable’ designs in magazines such as DWELL.
One of the purposes behind the theme for this year’s homes tour to educate the public about this period of architectural design, while also gaining some exposure to different demographics. Overall we believe that the tour will be a success and one of the most unique tours to date. Many of the homes have the exterior modern design of the 50’s and 60’s, and interior decor and artwork that fits with the era. As I’m sure you are aware, this is a bit of a departure from past tours. I understand that not everyone likes this period of design and may not be as interested in this tour as they were with ones of the past that highlighted mainly Victorian Homes of the late 19th century. That said, we believe that modernist homes deserve the attention of preservationist organizations such as our own, and are hopeful that this year’s tour will attract new interest from those who may not have been aware of our organization.
This month we were lucky enough to have syndicated columnist and author of About the House, Henri de Marne talk to us about old homes and seasonal water problems and some of the causes and problems related to that perennial issue. Mold, air exchange and “drafty old houses” were some of the key points touched upon. My favorite sound bite was - Ron “Are drafty old houses better?” Henri “Well, healthier, in some ways”.
I enjoyed the opportunity to talk with David White our Director of Planning and Zoning here in Burlington and he had a lot to say about the benefits of local preservation planning.
By Mary Sullivan, BED Communications Coordinator - City of Burlington, Pine St, msullivan@burlingtonelectric.com Fri, 06 November 2009
Here is a tip from Chris Burns, director of BED’s Energy Services.
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Energy Tip from the Burlington Electric Department
With the heating season here it is important to know what types of improvements save energy in buildings and what do not. There is still a lot of myths and misinformation.
Let’s discuss two — setting back the temperature and replacing windows.A thermostat setback does save energy. For each degree you lower the thermostat (for the entire day) you save about 2% on your bill.With one or two regular setbacks lasting six to 10 hours each day it is possible to reduce your annual heating costs by 10 to 25%.Consider getting a 7-day programmable thermostat (about $30 to $60) to automatically adjust the temperature for you.You can program it to meet your work and sleep schedules.
Regarding window replacement, if your only reason for replacing windows is to save energy dollars it’s typically not worth it.The annual energy costs for a typical single-glazed window with a storm is about $35 per year when using natural gas heat.Installing the most energy efficient window could easily cut that in half.However, the price of a window could be several hundred dollars. Savings of about $17 per year is not very cost-effective.Houses generally lose much more heat through the ceiling to the attic, exterior walls and other air leaks than through the windows. More inches of insulation in the attic and/or sealing the big air leaks is almost always more cost-effective and improves comfort.
When determining the best bang for your buck in making your homes more energy efficient and comfortable, feel free to consult with BED or Vermont Gas Systems about options and potential savings.
Richard Moe talks again about efficiency and sustainability and the role of preservation.
http://www.preservationnation.org/magazine/2009/september-october/presidents-note.htmlWe look forward to the results of this long term study about the energy efficiency of original windows.
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“How do you feel about replacing original windows in historic building with new in the name of “energy efficiency”?
“Why do they call them replacement windows? Because you have to replace them in 15 years.”
As an architect specializing for over 30 years in historic renovations and the “greening” of historic homes, I have never seen an instance where replacement windows cost less than restored windows, last longer than restored windows, are more energy efficient than restored windows with storms, or ever look as good as the original. I also find the payback period on a restored window is half or less than that of a replacement, and frequently the replacement is being replaced before the payback is ever realized. And if you want to talk “green”, if you consider the embodied energy in an existing window, the energy requirements for manufacture and installation of a replacement window, the remarkably small amount of energy required to restore a window, the lack of energy savings from replacement vs restored, and the disposal of the original window in a landfill, the replacement window is not a green product. So why are the feds pushing replacements windows? What would you expect when the window industry writes the guidelines for them? Gary Kleier
130 year old wood windows, in exceptional condition, were replaced with vinyl windows because the contractor said they were better. Today the owner is in trouble with the local Historic Landmarks Commission, he is experiencing severe plaster damage, the installer is out of business and the heating and AC bills haven’t changed.
Kleier Associates Architects
P.O. Box 3343
Louisville, KY 40201-3343
Subject: New comment (15) on “How do you feel about replacing original windows in historic building with new in the name of “energy efficiency”?”
July 1, ‘09 I just talked with Andy at Green Mountain Windows and learned that on June 15 the feds changed the performance standards once again so that storm windows cannot be made to qualify for the tax credits. The fed’s website still mentions storms windows being allowed, but the standard they set cannot be met in practical terms of actually making a storm. I talked with the good folks at MonRay and they say the same thing.
The vinyl pirates win another battle. We cannot depend on the big corporations and federal government. Forget tax credits. We must take our own action to save our windows. Buy Green Mountain storms, or any other, or simply maintain the storms you now have. Add a low cost interior air panel to your wood windows and exterior storms, or simply use ordinary roller shades and curtains and you will have a window system that far out-performs any replacement window, and you keep the vinyl pirates’ off your ship and their hooks out of your pocket book.
