Historic buildings are the heart and soul of our built environment. They provide links to our past and are an important part of our cultural heritage and identity. They also serve as a renewable resource in the economic development and future of our communities. But how do you make these buildings safer and more efficient? How can they overcome challenges in meeting modern codes and standards? How do you restore a building that’s contaminated by hazardous materials, damaged by floods, fire or years of neglect? Learn about techniques and strategies that address these questions and see examples of how various contemporary needs and requirements can be balanced with respecting the features that make a building historic. Preserving the character that makes Vermont special across our downtowns, village centers and rural farmsteads starts with reinvesting in the embodied energy of our existing building stock and returning to the craft ways and knowledge inherited from generations before us.

Jamie Duggan is the Historic Preservation Review Coordinator for the State of Vermont’s Department of Housing & Community Development. Prior to that, he was the principal of Preservation Unlimited, a consulting and contracting company specializing in the architectural conservation and restoration of landmark buildings. Jamie has a Masters of Science in Historic Preservation from the University of Vermont, and a Certificate from the Preservation Education Institute. He has taught traditional building trades for numerous schools and institutions.