Latest news with #historicpreservation
Associated Press
a day ago
- General
- Associated Press
North Dakota promises flush toilets at historic sites
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — Lawrence Welk didn't have a flush toilet where he grew up, but visitors to his childhood home in rural North Dakota now do. The bandleader's childhood family home marks the latest step in the State Historical Society of North Dakota's nearly completed goal of installing flush toilets at its dozen most popular, staffed sites. The most recent success, with the final three planned to be completed soon, came before the unveiling of a statue of Welk at a site that draws fans who recall 'The Lawrence Welk Show,' which ran on TV for decades starting in the 1950s. The North Dakota group's goal of replacing pit toilets with flush units may seem like a humble aspiration to some, but it's an important milestone, said Chris Dorfschmidt, a historic sites manager. 'A lot of our sites are kind of in the middle of nowhere. As I like to put it, history didn't happen where it's convenient,' he said. 'Because of that, if you've driven all the way out there, and that's the best we can do to kind of accommodate you, it's not the most pleasant experience.' North Dakota has 60 state historic sites — everything from museums and an underground nuclear launch facility to plaques mounted on boulders in fields. 'All of our sites, they really do help share a story of us as a state,' Dorfschmidt said. Two other facilities are slated to be finished by June 30: at Whitestone Hill, the site of a deadly 1863 attack by U.S. troops against Native Americans; and Fort Buford, a military fort near the Missouri-Yellowstone river confluence. The Historical Society also is eyeing the Chateau de Mores for flush toilets. The wealthy Marquis de Mores built the 26-room home in 1883 near Medora, a present-day tourist town in the state's scenic Badlands where a young President Theodore Roosevelt once roamed. Less-visited sites that aren't staffed likely won't receive a restroom upgrade, which costs about $150,000 each. At the Welk Homestead, about 50 miles (80.5 kilometers) southeast of Bismarck, workers matched the color scheme of the restroom to the house and farm buildings, including interior colors. 'We made it to fit into the site and harmonize with the site and just be a pleasant part of the experience,' Historic Sites Manager Rob Hanna said.
Forbes
a day ago
- Business
- Forbes
Cities Consider Using Eminent Domain For Unholy Property Seizures
A person takes a picture of the childhood home of the new Pope Leo XIV in Dolton, Illinois, (Photo ... More by KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI/AFP via Getty Images) Robert Prevost grew up in a modest home in the south Chicago suburb of Dolton, Illinois. Recently, a realty company purchased that old home, fixed it up, and put it up for sale. Then a few weeks ago, Robert Prevost became Pope Leo XIV. Now that modest home is in demand. The house is supposed to be auctioned off, with bidding starting at $250,000. How much of a premium will people pay for the childhood home of a Pope? Ten percent? Twenty? Nobody knows because this hasn't happened before—we can't make a guess based on past sales of 'childhood Pope homes.' And we may never find out. Dolton officials are threatening to use eminent domain to force a sale so the home can become a publicly accessible historic site. But while taking the home for a public use meets the constitution's requirements to take property, the price the city ends up paying could be less than divine. When the government takes property through eminent domain, the constitution says it must pay 'just compensation' for the property, which courts say is whatever price the property would fetch on the open market. But figuring out what that price is can be tricky, and the government often stiffs property owners when it can get away with it. ProPublica had a series of articles several years ago showing how the federal government paid very different prices for property depending on whether owners could afford attorneys. That's where the planned auction would have been helpful. After all, the best evidence of how big a 'Pope premium' the house commands on the open market would be an auction on the open market. And that may well be why the city moved so quickly: In May, city officials darkly warned the current owner to make sure bidders knew 'their 'purchase' may be only temporary since the Village intends to begin the eminent domain process very shortly.' If the city can suppress bids at the auction, it leaves itself the option of arguing that the real value of the property is what the home was on sale for before the Pope's elevation: $199,900. It could even argue it should be lower than that. The Pope himself has been quite busy and hasn't commented specifically on what should happen with his old family home, but Christian Britschgi writing for Reason noted that his first included the line: "[Saint] Peter must shepherd the flock without ever yielding to the temptation to be an autocrat.' The actual 'fair market' price for a Pope's childhood home may be high or it may be low, but Dolton shouldn't be afraid of the truth. And it shouldn't be using public power to try to stop the current owners' efforts to find out exactly what their property is worth in the real world. Meanwhile, a city in New Jersey is considering another unholy use of eminent domain, except here it is directed squarely at a church. In Toms River, the Christ Episcopal Church wants to open a small homeless shelter on its property. But the town has a different plan for the church's property: pickleball courts and a skate park. Christ Episcopal hosts a number of community programs, including an affordable housing nonprofit. That nonprofit recently submitted plans to the zoning board for a 17-bed overnight shelter on the church property. Like many areas across America, rising home prices have contributed to rising homelessness across New Jersey. One group estimates that the number of homeless residents in the region has doubled in recent years. But for the mayor of Toms River, a new park complex along the city's eponymous river is a priority. He said the church's property is, 'a great opportunity for parking, for recreation.' Broader plans for the area include taking nearby waterfront property to build a tiki bar and jet ski rentals. The church found out about the effort to seize its property a mere 24 hours before the city council first considered a measure. It passed by a 4-3 vote in a contentious meeting where council members yelled at each other. A second approval may come this week. That the vote to take the property came just three weeks before the zoning board considered the application for the shelter is far too convenient. The Fifth Amendment allows government to take property for public use and parks usually fit that definition. But the town doesn't want a park so much as it doesn't want a homeless shelter. Whether or not this kind of bad faith use of eminent domain is constitutional is a somewhat open question. For instance, in nearby Connecticut the state supreme court rejected an attempt to stop an affordable housing development with sham playing fields. Massachusetts, Georgia, and Rhode Island similarly prohibit these so-called pre-textual takings. Last fall, the Supreme Court almost took up the case of a Long Island hardware store chain that lost its property to a town for a 'passive park' (the town had no plan to develop the land). Justices Thomas, Gorsuch, and Alito said they would have granted the case but four votes are needed to achieve Supreme Court review. Pretextual takings are an incredible threat to private property. As long as the government is willing to pay the 'fair market' price practically any property can be seized. That market price doesn't include whatever an owner might spend in court trying to keep their property. Challenging even the most outlandish use of eminent domain could mean coming out the other end of the process without a home or business and poorer for it. The Asbury Park Press speculated that the New Jersey episcopal diocese's poor financial situation may be a consideration in whether it negotiates or resists. For now though, the church has indicated it will fight and it has support from other area houses of worship. The mayor has talked about the need to 'balance the hardships' of a community without a park and speculated that the church congregants could simply 'drive to a different location every Sunday.' This is a grim view of governing that is fundamentally at odds with America's traditions of property and religious rights. Christ Episcopal has been in Toms River since 1865 and it wants to use its property to fulfill its religious mission to care for the poor at no expense to the town. The mayor wants to provide convenient recreation at cost to the taxpayers. The U.S. Constitution gave government the power of eminent domain but courts shouldn't merely roll over whenever government presents a plan to take private property. The Fifth Amendment also says that no one should be deprived of their property without due process of law. When the government presents an unholy use of eminent domain, judges should consider all the facts and uphold justice.
The Independent
2 days ago
- General
- The Independent
North Dakota's historic sites will finally have toilets that flush
Lawrence Welk didn't have a flush toilet where he grew up, but visitors to his childhood home in rural North Dakota now do. The bandleader's childhood family home marks the latest step in the State Historical Society of North Dakota's nearly completed goal of installing flush toilets at its dozen most popular, staffed sites. The most recent success, with the final three planned to be completed soon, came before the unveiling of a statue of Welk at a site that draws fans who recall 'The Lawrence Welk Show,' which ran on TV for decades starting in the 1950s. The North Dakota group's goal of replacing pit toilets with flush units may seem like a humble aspiration to some, but it's an important milestone, said Chris Dorfschmidt, a historic sites manager. 'A lot of our sites are kind of in the middle of nowhere. As I like to put it, history didn't happen where it's convenient,' he said. 'Because of that, if you've driven all the way out there, and that's the best we can do to kind of accommodate you, it's not the most pleasant experience.' North Dakota has 60 state historic sites — everything from museums and an underground nuclear launch facility to plaques mounted on boulders in fields. 'All of our sites, they really do help share a story of us as a state,' Dorfschmidt said. Two other facilities are slated to be finished by June 30: at Whitestone Hill, the site of a deadly 1863 attack by U.S. troops against Native Americans; and Fort Buford, a military fort near the Missouri-Yellowstone river confluence. The Historical Society also is eyeing the Chateau de Mores for flush toilets. The wealthy Marquis de Mores built the 26-room home in 1883 near Medora, a present-day tourist town in the state's scenic Badlands where a young President Theodore Roosevelt once roamed. Less-visited sites that aren't staffed likely won't receive a restroom upgrade, which costs about $150,000 each. At the Welk Homestead, about 50 miles (80.5 kilometers) southeast of Bismarck, workers matched the color scheme of the restroom to the house and farm buildings, including interior colors. 'We made it to fit into the site and harmonize with the site and just be a pleasant part of the experience,' Historic Sites Manager Rob Hanna said.
Associated Press
2 days ago
- General
- Associated Press
North Dakota's historic sites will finally have toilets that flush
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — Lawrence Welk didn't have a flush toilet where he grew up, but visitors to his childhood home in rural North Dakota now do. The bandleader's childhood family home marks the latest step in the State Historical Society of North Dakota's nearly completed goal of installing flush toilets at its dozen most popular, staffed sites. The most recent success, with the final three planned to be completed soon, came before the unveiling of a statue of Welk at a site that draws fans who recall 'The Lawrence Welk Show,' which ran on TV for decades starting in the 1950s. The North Dakota group's goal of replacing pit toilets with flush units may seem like a humble aspiration to some, but it's an important milestone, said Chris Dorfschmidt, a historic sites manager. 'A lot of our sites are kind of in the middle of nowhere. As I like to put it, history didn't happen where it's convenient,' he said. 'Because of that, if you've driven all the way out there, and that's the best we can do to kind of accommodate you, it's not the most pleasant experience.' North Dakota has 60 state historic sites — everything from museums and an underground nuclear launch facility to plaques mounted on boulders in fields. 'All of our sites, they really do help share a story of us as a state,' Dorfschmidt said. Two other facilities are slated to be finished by June 30: at Whitestone Hill, the site of a deadly 1863 attack by U.S. troops against Native Americans; and Fort Buford, a military fort near the Missouri-Yellowstone river confluence. The Historical Society also is eyeing the Chateau de Mores for flush toilets. The wealthy Marquis de Mores built the 26-room home in 1883 near Medora, a present-day tourist town in the state's scenic Badlands where a young President Theodore Roosevelt once roamed. Less-visited sites that aren't staffed likely won't receive a restroom upgrade, which costs about $150,000 each. At the Welk Homestead, about 50 miles (80.5 kilometers) southeast of Bismarck, workers matched the color scheme of the restroom to the house and farm buildings, including interior colors. 'We made it to fit into the site and harmonize with the site and just be a pleasant part of the experience,' Historic Sites Manager Rob Hanna said.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Owners of 6 Reading properties recognized for outstanding preservation
The owners of six Reading properties have been recognized for their outstanding work in preserving the city's architectural heritage. The city's annual preservation awards are given by City Council and the city's Historical Architectural Review Board to acknowledge excellence in historic preservation. City Preservation Specialist Amy Woldt Johnson and Suzanne Cody, chair of the board's outreach and education committee made the presentation Monday at council's regular meeting. The WCR Center for the Arts at 140 N. Fifth St. is a winner of the annual historic preservation awards given by Reading City Council. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE) 'We would like to thank council members and the mayor for this opportunity to present several projects that are representative of our collective interest in promoting the preservation of historic resources in our city,' Cody said. 'The HARB recognizes projects that have successfully preserved, rehabilitated, restored or reconstructed those portions and features of the property which are significant to its historic, architectural and cultural values.' The following property owners were acknowledged: • Berks County investments LLC for work at 135 N. Sixth St. • WCR, Center for the Arts for work at 140 N. Fifth St. • Thomas C. Ryan and Henry M. Pruski for work at 439 N. Fifth St. • Finest Property Corporation for work at 534 and 536, Elm St. • Yahya Abdur Rahman, Mary Jean Flannery and Cecil Palmer III for work at 453 Douglass St. 'The recipients of the awards are to be commended for their sensitive treatment of character defining materials and unique architectural elements,' Cody said, 'both for its immediate improvement on the quality of our urban environment and for the architectural heritage that it upholds for the enrichment and enjoyment for future generations.' * The WCR Center for the Arts at 140 N. Fifth St. is a winner of the annual historic preservation awards given by Reading City Council. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE) * The properties at 534 and 536 Elm St. are winners of the annual historic preservation awards given by Reading City Council. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE) * The Community Medical Campus at 145 N. Sixth St. is a winner of the annual historic preservation awards given by Reading City Council. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE) * The home at 453 Douglass St. is a winner of the annual historic preservation awards given by Reading City Council. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE) * The home at 439 N. Fifith St. is a winner of the annual historic preservation awards given by Reading City Council. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE) Show Caption 1 of 5 The WCR Center for the Arts at 140 N. Fifth St. is a winner of the annual historic preservation awards given by Reading City Council. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE) Expand
