Don’t go overboard in designating old buildings as ‘historic’

I understand that many old buildings have historical value. But what some find historical others find decrepit, with huge health risks due to asbestos and lead. Bringing these buildings up to today’s safety standards is very costly and in most cases not worth the money.

Instead of spending millions to save these buildings, they should be torn down and replaced with  new buildings with the same architectural design. They could have plaques telling the story of what was there. That way you have a useful building with modern amenities at less than the cost of restoration.

Not all old buildings are of historical importance. They are just places where our ancestors lived, worked or worshipped. Not every 100-year-old building is reusable or important enough to restore. History is history, the present is now and the future is unknown.

— Gary Colborn, Carlsbad