Historic Harrisburg Association celebrates 50 years of preservation

• Scott LaMar
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  Scott LaMar has worked in both radio and television for more than four decades.
  
  Currently, LaMar is the Host and Executive Producer of The Spark program on WITF-FM, 89.5 & 93.3 in Harrisburg, Pa.
  
  Previously, LaMar was WITF TV’s Sr. Public Affairs producer and produced the station’s award-winning weekly public affairs TV program, Smart Talk.
  
  In addition to his on-air duties, LaMar has moderated political candidate debates, including those for candidates running for Pennsylvania governor and the U.S. Senate and was a regular contributor to BBC World News TV before and after the 2020 U.S. Presidential election.
  
  LaMar often emcees or moderates local events and has gone as far as California to emcee a national event.
  
  The American Society of Civil Engineers honored LaMar with their national Excellence in Journalism award in 2020. He has been nominated for five Mid-Atlantic Emmy Awards.
  
  LaMar and The Spark have been recognized throughout the Central Pennsylvania community including ADVOZ Lancaster’s “Dignity in Dialogue Award”, the South-Central Assembly’s “Regional Citizen Award” and was named a “Humanitarian Hero” by The Humane Society of the United States/Pennsylvania.
  
  A native of Coatesville, Pa., LaMar has also worked as a broadcast news anchor, sports play-by-play announcer and manager.

Airdate: February 15, 2023

The Historic Harrisburg Association is celebrating it’s 50^th anniversary this year. It has to considered as one of the state’s most successful historic preservation organizations.

What are some of those successes and why is historic preservation important?

Appearing on The Spark Wednesday, David Morrison, Executive Director of the Historic Harrisburg Association, was asked why is historic preservation important,”I think it has a lot to do with it, with the character of the communities. The architecture, the buildings — that’s what people, that’s why they want to live there. Now, we’ve got a lot of great infill housing, we’ll call it, which which blends in if it’s successfully built, which is just as nice. And some people prefer that. But having a good stock of of historic houses, be they row houses in Midtown and uptown or be they landmarks in a city, that’s what creates that defines the character.”

Jeb Stuart, the preservation advisor for the Historic Harrisburg Association, talked about establishing a historic, which Harrisburg did first in 1974,”You try to determine a consistency in architecture and what period that might represent. Whether it be late 19th century or early 20th century, where there is a continuity of row. If there are intrusions such as newer buildings that don’t relate or open areas, surface parking lots and so forth, those areas may not be established as a historic district per say, only because it doesn’t have the character that would be required to establish one. That’s not to say the buildings within those areas aren’t significant. The question is whether or not it would be pertinent to establish establish a historic district in that area.”