Preservation
Articles
“Battling Teardowns: Saving Neighborhoods,”
Provided by the National Trust for Historic Preservation
Historic: Battling Teardowns and Saving Neighborhoods
Across the nation a teardown epidemic is wiping out historic neighborhoods one house at a time. As older homes are demolished and replaced with dramatically larger, out-of-scale new structures, the historic character of the existing neighborhood is changed forever. Neighborhood livability is diminished as trees are removed, backyards are eliminated, and sunlight is blocked by towering new structures built up to the property lines. Community economic and social diversity is reduced as new mansions replace affordable homes. House by house, neighborhoods are losing a part of their historic fabric and much of their character. “Battling Teardowns: Saving Neighborhoods” is an address by Richard Moe, President, National Trust for Historic Preservation Commonwealth Club, San Francisco, California, June 28, 2006.
