City clinic to help renovate old buildings

VW independent/submitted information

Main Street Van Wert Inc., the Van Wert County Historical Society, and the Ohio History Connection’s State Historic Preservation Office will sponsor a Building Doctor Clinic for  owners of old buildings in the Van Wert area Thursday and Friday, August 17-18.

The clinic features Building Doctors Nathan Bevil and Kathy Fortener of the Ohio History Connection’s State Historic Preservation Office. It begins with a free seminar from 7-9 p.m. Thursday, August 17, at the Van Wert County Historical Society Annex Building, 602 N. Washington St. in Van Wert. Open to all old-building owners in the area, the seminar will feature guidelines for renovation projects and ways to solve some of the most common problems of buildings dating from 1800 to 1955.

On Friday, August 18, from 9 a.m.-3 p.m., the Building Doctors will visit pre-1955 buildings within five miles of downtown Van Wert, advising owners on specific technical or design problems by appointment. The ‘doctors’ examine all kinds of older buildings. Some of the things that typically call for an on-site examination include persistent peeling paint or flaking plaster, a wet basement, deteriorating masonry and plans for remodeling, additions or demolitions.

Bevil holds a bachelor’s degree in history and historic preservation from Mary Washington College and a master’s degree in historic preservation from the University of Georgia. He administers the Certified Local Government and Building Doctor programs, guided development of the State Historic Preservation Plan, and provides technical assistance to communities on local historic preservation matters for the Ohio History Connection’s State Historic Preservation Office.

Fortener, grants manager for the Ohio History Connection’s State Historic Preservation Office, holds a master’s degree in historic preservation from Eastern Michigan University. She manages a program of historic preservation grants for local governments, administers legal agreements that govern the preservation of selected historic properties in Ohio and oversees other contracts.

The seminar and on-site consultations are free with advance registration. To register, visit building-doctor.org or call 800.499.2470 or 614.298.2000. For more information, contact Adam Ries at 419.203.5732 or adamries@live.com.

The Building Doctor program is made possible in part by a grant from the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Historic Preservation Fund, administered by the Ohio History Connection’s State Historic Preservation Office. Each clinic is made possible by support from local cosponsors, as well.

The Ohio History Connection’s State Historic Preservation Office is Ohio’s official historic preservation agency. It identifies historic places in Ohio, nominates properties to the National Register of Historic Places, reviews federally-assisted projects for effects on historic, architectural and archaeological resources in Ohio, consults on conservation of older buildings and sites and offers educational programs and publications.