Civic Council Launches First Ortner Park Slope Preservation Awards
The Park Slope Civic Council is launching the first annual Evelyn and Everett Ortner Park Slope Preservation Awards to celebrate those who have restored, transformed, or built properties that honor the unique, historic characteristics of our neighborhood.
The awards are named for Evelyn Ortner (1924-2006) and Everett Ortner (1919-2012), long-time residents of and advocates for the community.
“The couple encouraged people to purchase dilapidated row houses in Park Slope and other historic Brooklyn neighborhoods in order to renovate and live in them, thereby enabling these communities to regain their social and economic vitality,” the Civic Council wrote in a release. “The Ortners also played key roles in creating the Park Slope Historic District, now the largest landmarked district in New York City.”
There are six categories of awards:
Exterior Restoration: The overhaul of a deteriorated building that preserves its original function as well as preserving the integrity of its architecture and decorative and structural elements.
Exterior Rehabilitation: Significant modifications, alterations and/or additions to a building in a manner compatible with its original architectural character.
Adaptive-Reuse: Transformation of a building to serve a new purpose while maintaining its architectural integrity, thereby sustaining the unique historic identity of the neighborhood.
New Construction: Design and construction of a new building that, while clearly contemporary, complements the character of neighboring historic structures.
Storefront Design: Construction of a new storefront or the modification of an existing storefront that reflects an appreciation of the historic character of the neighborhood and enhances the appearance of one of its commercial districts.
Neighborhood Intervention: Action by an individual or group to prevent the demolition or disfigurement of a historic structure.
Projects and interventions must be within the area bounded by Flatbush Avenue, Plaza Street West, Prospect Park West, the Prospect Expressway, and the west side of 4th Avenue, and have been completed between January 1, 2009 and September 1, 2014.
An application can be found online here, and can be be submitted no later than 5pm on September 1, 2014 to ortnerawards@parkslopeciviccouncil.org or by mail to Ortner Preservation Awards, Park Slope Civic Council, P.O. Box 172, 123 7th Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11215.
Award recipients will be selected by an independent jury of experts in architecture, historic preservation, and community engagement, and will be presented at the December 4, 2014 meeting of the Park Slope Civic Council.