Three generations of the Bennett/Martin family are fighting city hall to be allowed to move their 1920′s era home to a new location to prevents its demolition into landfill trash.

This house is the greenest house already, because the energy used to build it has already been spent. These older homes are well-constructed and will serve as a family home for years to come. To tear it down is extremely wasteful.

Come on, Jenks, how can you promote antiques in your retail businesses and not care about your local antique and historic homes?
It is time to look beyond immediate gratification of the new and revere the mature elements of your community. This is what creates character.

Follow the link to read entire article from the Tulsa World:
Family petitions Jenks to move 1920s house despite city ordinance | Tulsa World

Dear TMAPC, PlaniTulsa, and City Councilors:

Preservation of historic resources in this country is important for many reasons.

Among them are:

It focuses on sustainability. It extends the life of older historic buildings, it emphasizes adaptive reuse, it doesn’t fill the dump with old growth timber. Core samples of landfill of cities in this country reveals over 40% is building materials. It influences climate change and carbon footprint. The greenest building is one that already exists.

The most vital gathering places in most major cities are historic places. Miami’s Southbeach, Capitol hill in Washington, Manhattan’s West Village, or locally, Cherry street, or Bricktown in Oklahoma City.

Preservation focuses on heritage travel. It provides genuine, learning experiences, cultural relevance, and many jobs. A local example is Route 66. The National Trust for Historic Preservation National Meeting here last year is another.

A developer is proposing bulldozing through the middle of two adjoining neighborhoods in Tulsa for a yet-to-be defined “medical corridor.” The hospitals have made it clear in public and private meetings they don’t need it and don’t want it. It is only the developer, motivated only by greed, and using false need as an excuse, who wants to do this. The homes involved are occupied, well-kept, affordable, sustainable housing nestled among peers, in attractive vibrant neighborhoods with a mix of old and new residents all of whom bought here in part because of the neighborhood’s historic architectural relevance, a fact which allowed both to be listed on the National Register of Historic Places in the first place. Less than half a percent of the land surface area in Tulsa is so designated. There are many other places to develop.

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