Mayor David Cohen and former President Brooke Lipsitt appointed me several
years ago to a task force established to develop policies for preserving the
historic character of city owned buildings and landscapes. After she left
the Board, I
replaced former Alderman Susan Basham as Co-Chair. (Chief Administrative
Officer Michael Rourke is the other Co-Chair.) We have focused on
painting the balustrade at City Hall, protecting the dioramas of famous
battles in the War Memorial from water damage, replacing light fixtures, and
making other necessary improvements to protect the building and its grounds.
In the future, we hope to restore the dioramas and the steps of the War Memorial and to repair the Civil War Memorial in the Newton Cemetery. We have also supported the restoration of the Newton Corner Branch Library and of the badly deteriorated city Burying Grounds. We are exploring ways to preserve the Crafts Street Stable and the Newton Health Department Building (formerly the Newton Centre Branch Library). We have in addition revised a list of city properties ranked by their historic significance as a guide to future city activities. Most of our work is dependent on the use of city Community Preservation funding. For more detailed information, click here.
This page last updated on October 12, 2005
Back to Brian Yates' Home Page