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Introducing the Stewardship Report

From the Desk of the Executive Director, December 2025


As we approach the end of this year, I am grateful for the many people who partner with us — community members, preservation professionals, tradespeople, local governments, and passionate advocates — in the ongoing work of caring for Utah’s historic places and spaces.


Today, I am pleased to introduce the Stewardship Report, from Preservation Utah, our new publication that will serve as a bridge between our monthly newsletter updates and the deeper stories behind preservation in the state. We aim to share not only what we are doing at Preservation Utah but also the broader currents shaping the built environment, heritage, and community identity across Utah.


Why the Stewardship Report?

Our monthly newsletter carries timely updates, upcoming events, and opportunities for you to engage. The Stewardship Report, by contrast, will present stories, field notes, reflections, and perspectives that reach beyond the newsletter. It will highlight the full breadth of preservation in Utah—what is challenged, what is advancing, and what is possible.


Preservation News Highlights from 2025

Across Utah this year, preservation has revealed itself not as a single effort, but as a series of unfolding stories — each one shaped by community priorities, historic character, and the tension between growth and continuity.


In many rural towns, that story centered on rebirth. Through the Utah State Historic Preservation Office’s Rural Revive & Reside grants, long-vacant downtown buildings found a path back into community life. Storefronts with boarded-up windows and empty upper floors are being stabilized, reimagined, and prepared for new uses — housing above, small businesses below, and the promise of activity returning to main streets that have been quiet for too long. These projects show how even modest buildings, once overlooked, can become anchors for local resilience. 


In Salt Lake City, the narrative has been about both preservation of beloved landmarks and recognition of historic residential life. After five years of structural upgrades, interior conservation, and careful restoration, the Roof Restaurant reopened in the Joseph Smith Memorial Building — a reminder that cherished social spaces also hold architectural and cultural significance. Nearby, two 1906 apartment buildings, the Sampson Flats and Altadena Apartments, were unanimously designated as local historic landmarks. Their brick façades, deep cornices, and early-20th-century design stand in stark contrast to the rapid redevelopment around them, and the designation ensures that these homes — and the stories of the people who lived in them for more than a century — will remain part of the evolving city.


Elsewhere in the capital, the future of the 1921 Rowland Hall campus came into sharp focus when the property entered the market. While its sale opens five acres for redevelopment, it also sparked essential community conversations about how historic school sites can be integrated, adapted, or preserved as neighborhoods shift. The questions being asked here: What should be saved? What can be reused? How can history guide design? — echo across Utah.


In Park City, preservation work climbed into the mountains, where the remnants of the region’s mining history continue to shape identity and tourism. Efforts by Friends of Ski Mountain Mining History to stabilize mine structures, reclaim dangerous shafts, and interpret the landscape signal an ongoing commitment to the town’s earliest industry. These projects show how preservation can honor working-class heritage, reinforce a sense of place, and simultaneously strengthen outdoor recreation economies.


Together, these stories illustrate what preservation in Utah looks like today: adaptive reuse breathing life back into historic main streets; landmark protections safeguarding homes and neighborhoods; redevelopment debates centering community voices; and landscapes being studied, stabilized, and shared. Preservation is active, ongoing, and deeply connected to how communities imagine their future while caring for their past.


December at a Glance

I’d like to draw your attention to a few timely opportunities this December:


Looking Ahead to 2026 — Preservation Utah’s 60th Anniversary Year

In 2026, Preservation Utah will celebrate 60 years of preserving, protecting, and promoting Utah’s historic places. This milestone invites us to reflect on how far the organization has come—and to look forward with intention to what preservation can mean over the next six decades.


When Preservation Utah (then Utah Heritage Foundation) was founded in 1966, the conversation about preservation in the state was just beginning. Utah was growing rapidly, federal urban renewal projects were reshaping city centers, and the state’s architectural heritage was at risk of being lost. In response, committed community members stepped forward to advocate for significant places, including the Garden Park Ward, the William S. Godbe House, and the historic buildings that helped define early Salt Lake neighborhoods. Those early efforts set the stage for a statewide movement.


Over the decades, Preservation Utah expanded from a concern for individual buildings to a broader vision—one involving historic neighborhoods, Main Streets, cultural landscapes, rural communities, regional identity, trades education, and statewide advocacy. The organization grew its programming, launched tours and educational outreach, developed the Revolving Loan Fund, and took stewardship of Memorial House, transforming it into both a community gathering space and an example of successful adaptive reuse.


As we enter our 60th year, our focus is on renewal, statewide engagement, and building capacity for the future. 


In 2026, our work will include:


Elevating statewide stories

Through the Stewardship Report, community partnerships, and anniversary programming, we will share stories from every corner of Utah—urban and rural, northern and southern, well-known and often overlooked. These stories will highlight the diversity of Utah's heritage and uplift the people who preserve it.


Expanding preservation resources and access

We will continue strengthening programs such as the Revolving Loan Fund, making it easier for homeowners, small businesses, and communities to care for historic properties. Updates to policies, guidelines, and outreach will help more people participate in preservation.


Supporting Main Streets and neighborhood identity

From Salt Lake’s west side neighborhoods to regional towns facing growth pressures, we plan to work alongside communities to balance preservation with development. Our goal is to offer tools, visibility, and advocacy to help protect character while encouraging thoughtful reinvestment.


Building partnerships with cultural organizations, local governments, and preservation trades

Preservation is not a solitary effort. Our 60th year will emphasize collaboration—supporting local history groups, working with cultural partners, engaging with city and state agencies, and uplifting the skilled tradespeople who make preservation possible.


Honoring people and projects shaping Utah’s future

The 2026 Community Stewardship Awards, held on April 28, will recognize contemporary examples of preservation leadership across the state. In this anniversary year, they serve as one piece of a larger reflection on how Utah communities care for the places that matter.


Creating opportunities for community participation

Special events, tours, open houses, publications, and statewide outreach campaigns will invite Utahns to explore historic places, contribute stories, and join us in shaping the future of preservation.


Our 60th anniversary is not just a celebration—it is a chance to recommit to the values that have guided this organization since 1966 - community stewardship, education, advocacy, and the belief that historic places strengthen our sense of belonging.


How You Can Support Our Work

As we prepare for our 60th year, I invite you to support the work that keeps Utah’s historic places protected and thriving. Your contribution—whether through a year-end gift, membership, or sponsorship—directly strengthens our ability to provide resources to communities, expand statewide programs, and share the stories that connect us all.


If you believe in this work, I hope you’ll consider making a gift or becoming a Preservation Utah member. 


My Thank You

To everyone reading: thank you. Your engagement, your advocacy, and your belief in the value of historic places are the foundation of what we do. As we launch the Stewardship Report, I invite you to come behind the scenes with us—see the places, meet the people, learn the challenges, and share in the successes.


Together, we can ensure Utah’s historic buildings, landscapes, and stories are not just handed down—but remain vital, relevant, and cared-for for future generations.


Warm regards,

Brandy Strand Executive Director, Preservation Utah


P.S.

One of our flagship events, the 2026 Community Stewardship Awards, will take place on April 28, 2026, from 10 am to 12 pm at Memorial House. Registration opens March 31. We will honor excellence in rehabilitation, adaptive reuse, heritage organizations, industry experts, legacy businesses, and the lifetime achievement award with the Lucybeth Rampton Award. Project nominations open December 1 and close February 2. (If you’d like to apply or nominate someone, visit our website for details.)

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