Preserve Chattanooga and the University of Tennessee Chattanooga Department of Interior Architecture and Design will be hosting Mr. Donovan Rypkema on Sept. 18. Mr. Rypkema is a world-renowned expert on how historic preservation impacts local economies. He will be the keynote speaker for the Chattanooga Preservation Awards.
Officials said, "While historic preservation has often been advocated for on aesthetic and cultural grounds, there is much evidence of its environmental, economic and social impacts.
Mr. Rypkema will highlight recent quantitative and qualitative findings about the multiple values of historic preservation, including the role that older and historic housing stock plays in providing affordable housing.
"The Chattanooga Preservation Awards will recognize people and projects for the outstanding rehabilitation, restoration, preservation, adaptive reuse and/or long-term stewardship of historically significant places in our community. The intent of the awards is to honor those who go above and beyond to preserve historic resources, to inspire the community by highlighting exemplary projects and to encourage others to undertake similar efforts."
Mr. Rypkema is president of Heritage Strategies International and principal of PlaceEconomics. Working at the nexus of historic preservation and economic development, Mr. Rypkema has undertaken assignments in 49 U.S. states and nearly 60 countries. He serves on the Real Estate Market Advisory Committee of the UN Economic Commission for Europe, the Board of Directors of Global Urban Development, a member of the ICOMOS International Scientific Committee on the Economics of Conservation and the Advisory Board of the Small Business Anti-Displacement Network. He is the author of The Economics of Historic Preservation, which has been translated into Russian, Korean and Georgian, and the Feasibility Assessment Manual for Reusing Historic Buildings. Mr. Rypkema teaches preservation economics at the University of Pennsylvania, where he received the G. Holmes Perkins Award for Distinguished Teaching. He was also the recipient of the Crowninshield Award from the National Trust. The Crowninshield is the nation’s highest preservation award and is presented for lifetime contributions to the field of historic preservation.
This event is free and open to the public, but registration is required. For information, visit www.preservechattanooga.com.