New Jersey Historic Trust to Present 2010 Historic Preservation Conference

TRENTON - The New Jersey Historic Trust, an affiliate of the Department of Community Affairs (DCA), will co-host the 2010 Historic Preservation Conference on June 2 at Union County College in Elizabeth, NJ. The conference, "Sustainable Past = Sustainable Future," will focus on the opportunities that communities have to preserve their heritage and ways they can use their past to create a sustainable future.

"Historic preservation gives communities a sense of place and encourages people to connect with the past," said DCA Acting Commissioner Lori Grifa. "It also creates jobs, generates income, attracts visitors to communities and encourages neighborhood revitalization in towns of all sizes. The upcoming conference promises to be an enlightening educational event for everyone who participates."

Plenary speakers Robert Ivy, editor in chief of Architectural Record; Nancy Kolb, former CEO of the Please Touch Museum in Philadelphia; and Donovan Rypkema, of Place Economics, a Washington D.C-based economic development consulting firm, will join more than 30 other expert speakers during the second annual conference to address such topics as heritage tourism, reinterpreting urban history for new audiences, and green trends in historic districts.

Acting Commissioner Grifa will moderate a Legislative Panel that will explore issues of historic schools, historic tax credits and establishing a stable source of funding for historic preservation grants. The conference will also include several walking tour workshops and an evening reception at the Ritz Theater in Elizabeth.

"Holding the annual conference in the City of Elizabeth has opened up so many opportunities to highlight good stewardship, significant history and economic impact throughout our diverse agenda," said Historic Trust Executive Director Dorothy Guzzo.

In addition to the New Jersey Historic Trust, the conference is being hosted by the City of Elizabeth, Common Wealth of New Jersey, Historic Preservation Office of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, New Jersey Historical Commission, Union County College, and Union County Office of Cultural & Heritage Affairs.

Download a registration form at http://www.state.nj.us/dca/preservationconference/registration.html and fax the form to (609) 984-7590. Same day registrations will also be accepted. For information about the conference, please log on to www.njhistoricpreservationconference.org or contact the Historic Trust at (609) 984-0473 or njht@dca.state.nj.us.

Established in 1967, the Historic Trust is the only nonprofit historic preservation organization in New Jersey created by state law. It officially became a DCA affiliate in November 2002, in an effort to realign the state's smart growth initiatives with historic revitalization for the benefit of future generations.

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