It’s that time of year again! Mark your calendar’s for June 27-29, 2025. This year’s theme, Resilience, explores how the historic preservation field responds to and thrives in the face of changes and challenges. It will again be held at the Tompkins Center for History and culture at 110 North Tioga Street, Ithaca, NY.
The fifth annual Historic Preservation Planning Alumni, Inc. Symposium will be a hybrid event. This year we are incorporating field sessions (in-person only) in addition to traditional presentations and panel sessions. See below for our list of distinguished speakers.
Registration is now LIVE! To sign up, please visit our page on Eventbrite: REGISTER NOW
Day 1
Friday, June 27, 2025
3:00 PM
Prof. Michael Tomlan, Director of the Cornell Historic Preservation Graduate Program, will welcome the hybrid attendees to this year’s symposium and provide a program update.
3:30 PM
HPP '25 graduates (Amelia Mower, Raeesa Parvez Patel, Sarah Childs, Tamera Pilson, Yuke Li) will present their Master’s theses.
5:00 PM
Friday Keynote: Mary Raddant Tomlan will present on the work and life of legendary architect William H. Miller in support of her new book, William H. Miller, Architect: Making the World Beautiful.
6:00 PM
Ad hoc reception in Downtown Ithaca, venue to be determined.
Day 2
Saturday, June 28, 2025
9:00 AM
Coffee and pastries for in-person attendees.
10:00 AM
Beyond Resilience: Preserving Layered Histories: Terry Schwarz (HPP '91) presents a critical look at preservation’s traditional frameworks, questioning how tools like "appropriateness" and "period of significance" may erase complex histories; proposes more flexible, community-driven standards that embrace change, loss, and new technologies.
10:30 AM
Preservation of the Old Academic Building: A Collaborative Approach – Andrew Roblee (HPP '17) and Jeff Chusid's presentation reflects on a bilingual (Ukrainian/English) course taught at Kyiv-Mohyla Academy in Ukraine. Over 10 weeks, students were introduced to preservation principles and field documentation methods as they developed a Historic Structure Report (HSR) to support advocacy and fundraising for the landmark Old Academic Building.
11:00 AM
A “Common Cents” Approach to Resilience for Historic Resource: Jessy Eleff (HPP '11) presents a practical framework for hazard mitigation and resilience planning, emphasizing cost-effective risk reduction strategies, regulatory navigation, and real-world examples of resilience measures for historic properties.
Lunch Break
1:00 PM
Bringing Brutalism back from the brink: UMass Dartmouth LARTS: Alison Nash (BFA/BA '98, MArch '13) delivers a case study in restoring a brutalist Paul Rudolph-designed building with high energy-efficiency goals, integrating thermal comfort and emissions reduction while preserving architectural integrity.
2:00 PM
Saturday Keynote: Tony Opalka (HPP '78) will share experiences of his impactful career with New York SHPO as well as discuss his new book, Firehouses of Albany.
Break - 30 Minutes
4:00 PM
The Dewitt Mall Celebrates 50 Years: A documentary, by Ithaca-based filmmaker Shira Evergreen (BA English '02), explores the creation and history of The Dewitt Mall in celebration of its 50th anniversary. The building, originally home to Ithaca High School, was slated for demolition in 1970 when architect Bill Downing proposed a plan to redevelop it into a vibrant mixed-use space that has become a cornerstone of the downtown Ithaca community and an example of an early adaptive reuse project before this concept gained widespread popularity
Adjourn at 5:00 PM
dinner in downtown ithaca
Venue To Be Determined
Day 3
Sunday, June 29, 2025
10:00 AM
“King Alcohol Ends Reign” is a 10-block walking tour through downtown Ithaca that traces the city’s spirited (and often surprising) history with Prohibition. Led by trained docents from The History Center, this 60–70 minute experience takes you to the actual sites of speakeasies, dry raids, church protests, saloons, and reform rallies—uncovering how Ithaca became one of the first cities in New York State to go dry.
Through historic images, newspaper headlines, and stories of resistance and reform, you’ll see the city in a whole new light. Whether you’re a local or just visiting, you’ll never look at downtown Ithaca the same way again.