Best Practices
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Best Practices
The adaptive reuse of former institutional
properties can be a rewarding process that
revitalizes our communities and furthers sustainable
development. Successfully adapting a building
or property involves the coordination of planning
efforts, effective and practical regulations, and
sensitive design. Communities should plan for
institutional reuse long before an institution closes
its doors and a “For Sale” sign appears. When the
planning process for institutional reuse produces
predictable, consistent, and desirable results,
neighbors, municipal officials, and developers will
know their concerns have been addressed long
before the first proposal is submitted.
It has been said that, at its best,
preservation engages the past in a
conversation with the present over a
mutual concern for the future.
- William Murtagh
St. Charles Borromeo Seminary, Lower Merion.