HISTORIC NEIGHBORHOOD SCHOOLS In May 2001, the National Trust for Historic Preservation celebrated Preservation Week with a theme of "restore, renew, rediscover your historic neighborhood schools." This year's event brought national attention to the danger of abandoning older schools: this practice means not only the destruction of some of our built heritage but also the loss of an important social anchor in established neighborhoods. — Published 2001.0620
	SUSTAINABLE SUCCESSES The integration of sustainable materials and technologies into mainstream building practice is a central challenge of our time. To be fully successful, a building must be "green" in ways that are both attractive and cost-effective. The Northeast Green Building Awards celebrate design projects that advance the aesthetics and feasibility of environmentally sound buildings. — Published 2001.0613
	CONTEMPORARY MUSIC IN HISTORIC TEL AVIV The first thing that strikes you when you enter the Felicja Blumental Music Center and Library is its transparency. A holistic approach to the building's design has resulted in successful visual connections between the rooms and an extraordinary attention to detail. A muted golden hue pervading the open, spacious foyer originates from the intense Mediterranean light blended into the white walls with their discreet gold design and the plain pink carpeted floors. — Published 2001.0404
	CALIFORNIA HISTORIC PRESERVATION AWARDS An urban marketplace, a bridge, and a classical temple were among 19 projects receiving awards last weekend from the California Preservation Foundation in a ceremony at Stanford University. Design awards chair, Christopher Johnson, AIA, described the 18-year-old awards program as: "one of our principal means of honoring the preservation industry and educating the public about the important role that historic preservation projects play in the quality of life in our communities." — Published 2001.0228
	SAVING WRIGHT'S GORDON HOUSE For the last few months, a Chicagoan who died almost forty years ago has been the most celebrated architect in Portland, Oregon. That's what happens when somebody tries tearing down the state's only Frank Lloyd Wright building. Since September 2000, Wright's Gordon House in Charbonneau has come close to demolition, been fought over, and finally been spared. Now crews are preparing the little palace for disassembly and transport to nearby Silverton for its new life as a museum. — Published 2001.0131
	NONDESTRUCTIVE EVALUATION FOR HISTORIC PRESERVATION Comprehensive planning and budgeting for a historic preservation project cannot commence without a detailed survey of a building's existing conditions. Information gathered during the documentation search forms the basis but cannot supplant the need for field inspection. Those who plan to conduct the field investigation should first understand the existing construction. The original drawings, specifications, and historic research provide important information, but they may be inaccurate due to changes—both during the initial construction and in later modifications. — Published 2001.0110
	THE CHANGING SHAPES OF THE AXE Editor's Note:  The vernacular houses at the foundation of an American concept of "home" have their origins in simple constructions, where tools and materials coexisted in seemingly rustic harmony. To grasp the spirit of those archetypical structures, it helps to understand the tools that shaped them. For early Americans who built log houses, the axe was indispensable. The axe is one of the most fundamental woodworking tools, and in skilled hands, one of the most versatile. — Published 2000.0809

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