It's that "good" time of year again, when Preservation Houston reveals the winners of the Good Brick Awards for excellence in historic preservation. This year's 13 recipients run the gamut for renovations/remodels with special praise to a noted Houston socialite, fundraiser and community activist.
Preservation Houston presents the honors on Feb. 20 at River Oaks Country Club and will recognize Phoebe Tudor with the 2015 President's Award "for her outstanding personal and professional contributions to historic preservation in Houston," according to a statement from the organization.
“Every great city needs community leaders who are dedicated to the cause of historic preservation, and Houston is fortunate to have such a hard-working champion in Phoebe Tudor,” Stephanie Ann Jones, Preservation Houston executive director, says “So much of what’s been accomplished in Houston has been under Phoebe’s guidance and leadership.
"Trained as an architectural historian, Tudor was instrumental in the restoration of the landmark Julia Ideson Building, chaired the Houston Archaeological and Historical Commission and is leading the Friends of the Astrodome effort — and these represent only a few of her many accomplishments in the name of historic preservation."
The 13 people and organizations with projects chosen to receive Good Brick Awards this year are:
- Michael Skelly and Anne Whitlock, the H-E-B Award for the renovation of a Victorian cottage and the rescue of six historic houses in the East End.
- The Heritage Society, the Martha Peterson Award for restoration and reinterpretation of the Fourth Ward Cottage in Sam Houston Park.
- Glen Rosenbaum for rehabilitation of his mid-century modern house in Meyerland.
- Pearl Hospitality for development of the JW Marriott Houston Downtown in the historic Carter Building.
- Cristo Rey Jesuit College Preparatory School for renovation of the former Mount Carmel High School.
- Harris County for renovation of the former Robert E. Lee Elementary School as the Leonel J. Castillo Community Center on the near Northside.
- Houston Community College for restoration of the former San Jacinto High School in Midtown.
- Nature Discovery Center Houston for rehabilitation of the historic Henshaw House in Bellaire.
- Stephen Howe and Alicia Blaszak for renovation and sympathetic addition to their Tudor Revival-style house in the Boulevard Oaks Historic District.
- Eva Hughes and Brenda Hughes for rehabilitation of the Art Deco Loggins-Hughes Building on Washington Avenue.
- Ellie and Christian Busker for renovation of a 1920s bungalow in the Sunset Heights Annex.
- Carl Hollimon for renovation and sympathetic addition to his Victorian cottage in the Old Sixth Ward Historic District.
- James Gast for his book, The Astrodome: Building An American Spectacle.
“For the past 36 years, the Good Brick Awards have been one of the best ways we have for increasing public awareness of historic preservation in Houston and encouraging additional projects,” Preservation Houston president Jane-Page Crump says. “As Houston’s preservation movement has matured, the Good Brick Awards have grown in scope and prestige.”
Reservations for the Cornerstone Dinner are available at 713-510-3990 or at PreservationHouston.org. Proceeds from the event benefit the programs and projects of Preservation Houston.
The public is invited to visit several Gold Brick Award-winning structures during Preservation Houston's annual Good Brick Tour, this year set for May 2 and 3. Tickets for admission to every property on the tour are $25 through April 30 and $30 beginning May 1 and may be purchased online Tickets also will be sold for $10 per location at all tour stops on the days of the tour.
Harris County, Leonel J. Castillo Community Center.
