Gone and too often forgotten

By John Bennett

May 15, 2007

With Savannah’s large inventory of fine historic buildings it’s easy to forget just how many have been sacrificed to make way for civic “improvements” such as interstate flyovers and parking garages.

Remembering what’s been lost is instructive today as the threat to city’s sense of place is perhaps greater now than at any time since the birth of Savannah’s preservation movement. The importance of historic structures and public spaces is amplified when we consider what’s already been sacrificed in the name of progress. How much more disruption of the urban fabric are we willing to accept in order to accommodate automobile storage, luxury condominiums and national chain hotels, especially when we seemed poised to enter an age of energy scarcity? We may look back to National Preservation Month 2007 as a critical moment in the struggle to protect Savannah’s historic resources and ensure its sustainability in the future.

Postcard image: Savannah’s Union Station was demolished in the early 1960s.

Posted in Preservation