The city of Spokane is advertising to fill the position of Historic Preservation Officer.  The position was previously held by Teresa Brum, who, after serving in the role since 1994, has been promoted to a new position to direct Business & Development Services, a department that includes the functions of incentives administration, business development, neighborhood business district revitalization, and historic preservation.  The Historic Preservation Officer position is being advertised nationally and the city expects to hire new staff by mid-June. 

Spokane has had a strong historic preservation program since 1989, and was the first program to receive state certification as a Certified Local Government.  The program will continue to staff the City-County Landmarks Commission and administer historic register programs and historic tax incentive programs.  The Landmarks Commission is chaired by Candi Coleman and includes eleven volunteers, each of whom has a specialized knowledge of historic preservation. Support staff will continue to be provided by Preservation Assistant Karen Marshall, who has been with the city since 1997.

Reflecting back on historic preservation in Spokane over the past several years, Teresa Brum said that support has grown significantly and building renovation activity has more than doubled.  She said that “historic preservation has been a successful community revitalization strategy, and historic district designation has helped improve neighborhoods such as Browne’s Addition and Nettleton’s Addition in West Central.  It has also made a significant contribution to the economic vitality of Spokane through the multi-million dollar renovations of buildings such as the Davenport Hotel, Legion Building, Holley Mason Building, Morgan Lofts, and the Saranac.  Additionally, environmentalists are now recognizing that historic preservation is a good sustainable development strategy.”

After serving as Spokane’s Historic Preservation Officer for 14 years, Teresa said that she is looking forward to hiring a new Historic Preservation Officer who will bring in new ideas and a fresh perspective.  About her new job, she said, “I’m pleased to be serving a new, strategic management role at the City.  I look forward to my new job as the manager of the Business & Development Services, a department that will take a big-picture approach to the revitalization and development of Spokane.”

For information about this job contact Human Resources Department at 625-6901 or click here http://www.spokanecity.org/jobs/ .