Indiana Landmarks Releases Most Endangered List

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An Indianapolis theater is on the state's list of the 10 Most Endangered places. Indiana Landmarks says the Rivoli Theater in Indianapolis joins other sites in Bedford, Evansville and South Bend on the list.

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Indiana Landmarks today announced its 10 Most Endangered, an annual list of Hoosier landmarks in jeopardy.

Circumstances that land properties on among the 10 Most Endangered generally involve one or more of the following factors: demolition threat, abandonment, neglectful owner, dilapidation, obsolete use, lack of money for repairs, unreasonable above-market sale price, out-of-the-way location, or encroaching sprawl.

“Indiana Landmarks works to save vintage places well before the eleventh hour, but sometimes very important structures reach a dire point, and calling attention to them via the 10 Most Endangered list helps rescue them,” says Marsh Davis, president of Indiana Landmarks, a nonprofit preservation organization. “They're not lost causes. All have the potential for revival and reuse,” he adds.

“These landmarks preserve connections to community heritage. Time and again, we find that restoring one important place spurs broader revitalization in a community,” Davis adds. Indiana Landmarks uses the Most Endangered list to bring attention to the imperiled sites and find solutions that will ensure their preservation.

Since the first 10 Most Endangered List in 1991, 104 historic places in severe jeopardy have appeared on the list, with only 13 lost to demolition. This year’s list includes seven new entries and three landmarks making repeat appearances.

The seven new 10 Most Endangered sites are:

– I.O.O.F-United Brethren Block, Huntington

– Former First Presbyterian Church and Lafayette Building, South Bend

– Camp Chesterfield, Chesterfield

– McCurdy Hotel, Evansville

– Rivoli Theater, Indianapolis

– Indiana Medical History Museum, Indianapolis

– Elks Building, Bedford

Landmarks repeating on the list from the previous year include:

– Mills House, Greenwood

– McDonald House, Attica

– Indiana County Homes

The prospects of seven places on the 2014 Most Endangered list improved enough that Indiana Landmarks removed the critical label. Many previously listed landmarks sites have been restored, including the Plainfield Diner on the historic National Road in Plainfield. The Streamline Moderne-style roadside diner with an original 1954 interior was an entry on the 2010 endangered list. To save it, the diner had to be moved to another site on the National Road where it was restored. It reopened last year as the Oasis Diner.

To find out more about each of the 10 Most Endangered, visit www.indianalandmarks.org or contact Indiana Landmarks, 317-639-4534 or 800-450-4534.

Source: Indiana Landmarks