Bill Text: VA HJR233 | 2014 | Regular Session | Enrolled
Bill Title: Commending Preservation Virginia.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)
Status: (Passed) 2014-02-06 - Bill text as passed House and Senate (HJ233ER) [HJR233 Detail]
Download: Virginia-2014-HJR233-Enrolled.html
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WHEREAS, Preservation Virginia, the successor to the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities, will celebrate its 125th anniversary on February 13, 2014; and WHEREAS, organized and chartered in 1889, the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities (APVA) was the first statewide historic preservation organization in the United States; the organization has been responsible for saving and preserving hundreds of historic places; and WHEREAS, APVA's early efforts include saving the Powder Magazine, Williamsburg's Colonial Capitol foundations, and other significant properties in Williamsburg, which were later transferred to Colonial Williamsburg upon its founding, as well as Powhatan's Chimney in Gloucester County and the Mary Washington House in the City of Fredericksburg; and WHEREAS, APVA acquired 22.5 acres in 1893 at Jamestown, saving and protecting the ruins of the only aboveground 17th-century remains of the first permanent English settlement in North America; and WHEREAS, for more than 100 years, APVA achieved its mission through a branch system that stretched from the Eastern Shore to the mountains of Virginia and through a statewide effort to grow the historic preservation movement; and WHEREAS, in 1994, APVA launched the Jamestown Rediscovery Archaeological Project to find and interpret the archaeological remains of the 1607 James Fort; the project has successfully recovered evidence of the fort and more than 2 million artifacts that have revealed new information and enhanced understanding of the nation's beginnings; and WHEREAS, in 1999, the Commonwealth's revolving fund of historic properties was transferred to APVA to save threatened properties, apply protective easements, and sell the properties to owners who would restore the properties and return them to productive use; and WHEREAS, in 2003, the organization changed its name to APVA Preservation Virginia to better reflect a commitment to statewide preservation; the name was later shortened to Preservation Virginia; and WHEREAS, in 2004, APVA Preservation Virginia combined with the Preservation Alliance of Virginia to unify nonprofit statewide efforts into one voice for preservation and to provide the Commonwealth with innovative programs such as an annual list of the Most Endangered Historic Sites, the annual Virginia Preservation Conference, and additional programs that raise awareness of the educational, economic, environmental, cultural, community, and other benefits of historic preservation; and WHEREAS, in 2007, APVA Preservation Virginia joined with local, state, and federal partners to greet national and world leaders at the ceremonies commemorating the 400th anniversary of the 1607 founding of Jamestown and honoring the legacies of the people of three continents who shaped the early beginnings of the United States—the Virginia Indians, the English, and later the Africans, most of whom came unwillingly to these shores; and WHEREAS, in 2012, Preservation Virginia restructured to more comprehensively meet the needs for preservation of the Commonwealth's historic neighborhoods, districts, archaeological sites, rural landscapes, and downtowns and to provide tools and promote policies that revitalize our communities, provide educational opportunities, and remind us that we are part of a larger continuum of history that makes the Commonwealth a leader in this nation; and WHEREAS, Preservation Virginia continues to be the steward and interpreter of significant places, including Historic Jamestowne, the John Marshall House, the 1665 Bacon's Castle, Patrick Henry's Scotchtown, and Cape Henry Lighthouse; and WHEREAS, Preservation Virginia looks forward to continuing to fulfill its mission to preserve, protect, and serve as an advocate for Virginia's cultural, architectural, and historic places in the future; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly hereby commend Preservation Virginia, which has benefited citizens throughout the Commonwealth and the United States, on the occasion of its 125th anniversary; and, be it RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to Preservation Virginia as an expression of the General Assembly's gratitude for the organization's many valuable contributions to the Commonwealth. |
