Index
The President's Corner
The Wickersham
House Museum is the TYHS showcase.
Located at Alaskaland, it is open to the public
from Memorial Day through Labor Day.
Each year more than 14,000 visitors get
a view of the small home built by
Judge James Wickersham
during the summer of
1904. The house is listed
on the National Register
of Historic Places, a
designation clearly
recognized for its
significance to Alaska
by visitors.
Less well known but clearly of interest is its designation as Alaska Landmark No. 1. The designation was given by Governor Wally Hickel in 1968 when involved citizens saved the house from certain destruction and moved the house to its present Alaskaland location. Its designation as Alaska Landmark No. 1 underlined the important role that Judge Wickersham played in the development of Fairbanks and the territory.
Many years passed before funds were obtained through the efforts of the TYHS to rehabilitate the house. Careful study of Wickersham' s journals made it possible to furnish the home with many items the Judge and his wife Debbie would find familiar. Each year the Society evaluates the house and solicits new items needed to authentically furnish the house. The Society is presently looking for an iron, among other items.
During the summer season staffing presents a problem. The house is open ten hours a day, seven days a week, as are all other attractions at Alaskaland. It is staffed a limited amount of hours by dedicated individuals and is dependent on a large volunteer force. Entry to the Wickersham House Museum is free: donations are solicited.
As the time draws
near for another year of
activities at Alaskaland and,
the Society is looking
into new avenues to
make the museum selfsufficient and to further
enhance its appeal to the
community, national and
international visitors
alike.
If you wish to help
or donate to the
operation of
Wickersham House
Museum, please contact
R. Blahuta at 457-6165
or call 455-TYHS. And
leave a message.
Alaskans therefore were delighted with the Intermodal Surface Transportation
Efficiency Act of 1991. Under the act ten or more percent of Federal
Highway Administration money's received by states were slated for
transportation enhancement use including non traditional projects such as
historic preservation activities.
Preservationist in Alaska viewed ISTEA legislation as an opportunity to
enhance historic neighborhoods and sites along transportation corridors. It
did not work out quite that way. Although the program promised to give
communities greater voice in deciding which programs would be funded no
concentrated effort was made by the Alaska Department of Transportation to
inform the public on the availability of funding. Applications started to
trickle in slowly. The legislation was several years old before the general
public became aware of its existence and started to submit applications.
Decisions were and are made by DOT. The numerical point based system
devised for ranking on the State Transportation Improvement Program has no
level playing field placing funding for historic resources low on the list.
Being open to interpretation the scoring system has generally not been
kind to ISTEA projects. The STIP list is once more reviewed on the state
level in Juneau. Final authority and release of funding comes from the
Division Administrator U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway
Administration.
In all its imperfection this program can do a world of good to preserve the
scenic beauty of our highways and byways, and most immediate endangered
historic properties. But changes are under way. ISTEA is up for
reauthorization in 1997, and debates about ISTEA effectiveness are already
shaping up. Certainly the National Highway System legislation -- a mandate
of ISTEA -- was to define the National Highway System. The legislation
commits $6.5 billion of federal funds annually to focus state efforts on
connecting railways, airports, water ports, and highways. It appears not
unreasonable to conclude that the NHS bill opens the door for diverting
funds from ISTEA provisions called transportation enhancements. ISTEA
earmarked $ 3 billion for these nontraditional transportation projects --
scenic, historic and environmental projects. But, the NHS legislation
authorizes the secretary of transportation to allow states to divert the
enhancement funds to make up for shortfalls in highway construction moneys
in certain cases. In addition guidelines for ISTEA enhancement projects
have been redefined favoring strictly transportation related projects such
as engines, wharves, depots and railways for funding making previously
allowed projects not that narrowly defined ineligible for funding. The new
guideline still gives state's discretion to retain "transportation
relationship" as part of their numerical scoring system.
Understanding the possible hardships that the new guidelines the Federal
Highway Administration allows grandfathering of the eligibility guidance.
To minimize the potential for reversing funding determinations, this
supplemental guidance will not apply to projects for which the state DOT/PF
has already notified project sponsors of a decision to fund the proposed
work.
This complicated and multifaceted legislation with its diverse regulations
and changing priorities on both the state and federal level has negatively
affected a local project of great importance to Fairbanks. Creamer's Dairy,
a local landmark has been caught in the quicksand's of bureaucratic red
tape and interpretation of eligibility. Creamer's Dairy was determined
eligible for ISTEA funding and placed on the STEP. On January 25, 1995, the
ADOT&PF project manager for Creamer's ISTEA Phase I notified the Alaska
Department of Fish & Game, stewards of the historic Creamer's Dairy complex
that $900,000 had been approved for repair and upgrade of the barn complex.
On March 6, 1995, ADOT&PF signed a reimbursable Services Agreement (RSA)
with ADF&G for $100,000 "to prepare plans, specifications and an engineer's
estimate for Creamer's". Nevertheless the Federal Highway Administration
terminated the project giving changes of eligibility for historic places on
the federal level, as discussed above as their reason. at the same time
FHA choose to interpret the "grandfathering" clause most narrowly. It is
noteworthy to point out that ADOT&PF dropped Creamer's of STEP thus did not
even acknowledge its previous listing. Local ADOT officials and Joseph L.
Perkins, Commissioner of ADOT&PF will tell you that the matter is out of
their jurisdiction because FHA requested that the project be determinate --
but then projects not on the state's STEP list are not eligible for FHA
funding.
Friends of Creamer's Dairy and local preservationists have challenged the
finding and are calling for restoration of funding. The Fairbanks North
Star Borough recognizing the contribution of Creamer's Dairy to the
livability of the Fairbanks community as well as its value to the tourism
industry in the interior passed a resolution in support of funding.
Will reason prevail or will federal bureaucracy, narrow, nonsensitive
interpretation of rules that meant to be flexible, and ever changing
priorities on the state level jeopardize the future of Creamer's Dairy? Or
will Fairbanksans with an interest in preserving a part of Fairbanks for
future generation succeed in their efforts to make the landmark accessible
to the public and to increase the local potential for heritage tourism?
These sessions are always helpful.
Advisors inform the NTHP of their special needs - i.e.
how situations may differ from region to region, assuring that the
NTHP obtains a good understanding of the strength and weaknesses
of historic preservation efforts in each region, how the National Trust
can serve the particular region best and demonstrate that historic
preservation can help create more livable communities for everyone.
Western Advisors are a vocal bunch, always putting a new spin on historic
preservation - western style.
For more
information on the
National Trust for
Historic Preservation
and its many programs,
contact Renee Blahuta at 457-6165.
Single and multiple family residences, condominiums, and
cooperatives listed or eligible for listing on the National Register of
Historic Places would qualify.
A developer may rehabilitate a qualifying property and
sell it to a homeowner with the credit.
The credit is limited to $50,000 for each principal residence.
The bill should be of special interest to owners of homes in
Fairbanks as well as in other communities around Alaska.
It could be a great boost to the restoration of our
buildings and historic districts.
The legislation would benefit developers, low income
and middle class families.
It would encourage owners to rehabilitate their property, and
rehabilitation activities would provide jobs for area residents.
Federal Transition Funding for NTHPThe
National Trust for Historic Preservations' Federal appropriation
has been cut in half and is set for complete
elimination in two years.
While the Trust is vigorously pursuing other funding sources
for its activities, it is hoping for a smooth transition that will
enable the Trust to continue to help.
We urge our members to ask Senator Ted Stevens to support an appropriation
for the National Trust of $3.5 million for Fiscal Year 1997, and ask him
to communicate his support to the interior appropriations
Subcommittee members in the House. (see
section under Grants and
Loans for recent information on National Trust activities in
Alaska.)
Contact:
Editorial:
National Highway System legislation and its impact on Fairbanks Historic
Properties.
What public policies have most consistently damaged historic neighborhoods,
streetscapes and natural scenic views? Some people would readily single out
complex transportation legislation and regulations.
Certainly, on the local level people are often alienated by the processes
involved in shaping the community's transportation system which ultimately
effect the livability of our community, our built environment, our
economy.
Newsmakers
Renee Blahuta,
Advisor to the National
Trust for Historical
Preservation from
Alaska, recently
attended a meeting of
advisors from the
Western Region, NTHP
in Phoenix, Arizona.
Topics under
discussion included
financial reports,
congressional updates
(see On the National Scene below) and a
discussion on service
delivery and committee
reports.
On the National Scene
Home Owners Tax Credit!
A bill to give owners of historic homes a 20% federal
income tax credit for rehabilitation work has been introduced in both
the Senate and the house of Representatives.
Alaska's Don Young cosponsored the bill in the House.
Sen. Ted Stevens
Federal Building
101 West 12th Ave., #4
Fairbanks AK 99701-6236
ALmost Good News for ISTEA Funding
ISTEA (short for
Internodal Surface
Transportation
Efficiency Act)
eligible projects: (might be eligible for funding
if placed on the State's STEP list over the next few years)
Grants, Trusts and Technical Services
In 1995 the
National Trust for
Historic Preservation
supported the following
preservation activities in
Alaska: