- by Curtis Kasefang, Preservation Raleigh Board Member
Hello from Raleigh’s oldest new preservation organization! We are more than six decades old, with yet another new name — Preservation Raleigh, Incorporated.
Preservation Raleigh’s 62 year old roots are in the formation of a city advisory group established at the request of citizens concerned about urban renewal by Raleigh City Council on December 18, 1961: The Raleigh Historic Sites Committee. This was quickly followed by its incorporation as the Raleigh Historic Sites Commission on October 3, 1962 so it could raise funds for its work. Thanks in large part to its advocacy, state enabling legislation was passed in 1967 allowing the Raleigh City Council to grant the Commission powers to recommend historic designation and protect properties once designated historic by Council. Over the years names changed as the city program grew and matured — Raleigh Historic Properties Commission, Raleigh Historic Properties and Districts Commission, Raleigh Historic Districts Commission, and today’s Raleigh Historic Development Commission (RHDC) — but the goal of protecting the city’s historic resources never changed. Because of its history, this organization had a unique dual organizational structure as both a unit of city government and as a non-profit corporation. City Council-appointed commissioners also served as board members of the non-profit.
With the growth of the City and its preservation program, administration of the City’s preservation program consumed more of the organization’s volunteer board member energy. There are also limits to the kinds of advocacy a city commission can engage in without City Council authorization. In this evolution, the non-profit became less vital to the point that the RHDC Commissioners added a goal to the Raleigh 2030 Comprehensive Plan to encourage the development of an independent advocacy organization. Recently a group of former commissioners saw that the need for independent city-wide advocacy had become acute. In a collaborative spirit, RHDC Commissioners voted in 2023 to spin off the non-profit from the Commission, appointed new board members, and then resigned from the non-profit board. The non-profit’s name was changed to Preservation Raleigh, continuing its tradition of adapting to the times to meet present and future needs.
Preservation Raleigh’s vision is to be the leading preservation advocacy organization in the City of Raleigh. Our mission — Securing Raleigh’s Architectural Inheritance for Everyone’s Benefit — will be advanced by engaging with citizens; through advocacy with City Council and its boards and commissions; through educational outreach to and support for property owners; and, through active support of the Raleigh Historic Development Commission’s Certificate of Appropriateness design review process. Our board members are experienced in corporate governance and have been actively involved in historic preservation service as RHDC Commission Chairs, nationally-recognized preservation professionals and volunteers, and community advocates.
As our community evolves, we evolve with it. Come join us in our work to preserve Raleigh’s rich historic tapestry.