Park Authority seeks ‘resident curator’ to restore the house at the Margaret White Gardens
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| The house at the Margaret White Gardens. |
The Fairfax County Park Authority is seeking a “resident curator” to live in and rehabilitate the house at the Margaret White Gardens in the Falls Church area of Mason District.
There will be a public information meeting on the Resident Curator Program for the house July 27 at 7 p.m. in the multimedia room at Green Spring Gardens.
Potential curators are also invited to an open house at the Margaret White Gardens, 6711 Princess Lane, Aug. 7, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.
The White house was built in 1939 by John C. and Margaret K. White. The Whites deeded the 13-acre site to the Park Authority in 1999.
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Resident curators live in a property owned by the Park Authority rent-free in exchange for a financial commitment toward rehabilitating and upkeep of the property. A curator can be an individual, nonprofit, or for-profit organization.
Curators receive a long-term lease and are responsible for maintenance expenses, utilities, and county property taxes.
According to the Resident Curator ordinance adopted by the Board of Supervisors in 2014, curators are required “to provide reasonable public access consistent with the historic property’s nature and use.”
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Curators are selected through a competitive application process based on such criteria as demonstrated experience, competency in historic preservation techniques, and financial capabilities.
The Park Authority has so far approved resident curators for three properties: the Turner Milk House in Great Falls, the Stempson Garage in Lorton, and the Clark/Enyedi Studio in Lorton.
The Park Authority is in the process of selecting curators for three other properties in Herndon, Vienna, and McLean. Eight additional properties are available, including the barn at the Margaret White Gardens.
I really hope someone will take this opportunity. In this country, we rarely make the effort to preserve anything–not the property or the land. On the whole, we're so often tearing something down, demolishing things, paving, and (re)building. It's especially striking when you visit older nations who have made the effort to maintain even the most ancient sites. It seems we're determined to prevent that at all costs.
–kda