July 23, 2014 at 2:10 p.m.

Board eyes education efforts

Preservation commission plans marketing campaign

By Rachelle [email protected]

Members of a local board are hoping to spread the word about guidelines for historic buildings in Portland.

The Portland Historic Preservation Commission met Wednesday and discussed ways to educate the public about the historic district and the guidelines for changes to the facades of buildings located in the district.

They are considering three options for educating the public: placing advertisements, writing letters to the editor and adding more information to the city's web site.

Since the commission met in August and briefly discussed the matter, commission members Emily Roberts and Don Gillespie have been getting cost estimates for advertisements. Roberts suggested that some sort of question and answer ads be placed in the newspaper and run on the radio.

Roberts said Wednesday that ads on radio station WPGW are $7 for 30 seconds, and $9 for 60 seconds. She said The Commercial Review is running a special this month of three one-quarter page ads for $300.

Roberts said she planned to design the ads, but would like some input from other commission members. She said she talked to Portland Mayor Bruce Hosier about the matter. "He is behind us to do some marketing," she said, adding that the mayor suggested a marketing plan be developed. Commission members are hoping for the city to pay for the advertisements, as the commission has no budget.

Joe Jarzen, who serves as an advisor to the commission, said the commission could apply for an education grant through the Indiana Historic Landmarks Foundation and the Indiana Humanities Council. The $2,000 to $4,000 grants would be awarded early next year.

Kristi Sturtz, of Sturtz Public Management Group, who serves as an advisor to the commission asked if commission members had considered adding a tab (or page) for the commission to the city's web site. Roberts said the matter hasn't been discussed, and Joe Jarzen, who also serves as an advisor to the commission, said he could talk to Portland Police Chief Bob Sours about adding the section to the city's web site. Commission members agreed that would be a good idea.

Jarzen also suggested that a letter to the editor or a series of letters be submitted to The Commercial Review. He revised a previous letter and gave commission members a copy to review on Wednesday. He said the commission members should contact him today and comment on the letter. The letter includes information about the commission and common misconceptions about the commission and its responsibilities.

"This is really important to get it started as quickly as possible. That's why those letters" are important, Gillespie said.[[In-content Ad]]
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