Conference Overview 

Hosted by the Clay County Historic Preservation Commission in cooperation with the South Dakota Office of Historic Preservation, the Yankton County Historic Preservation Commission, the Clay County Historical Society (CCHS), the W.H. Over Museum, the Edith Siegrist Library, and the Vermillion Chamber and Development Company (VCDC), the conference will emphasize the economics of historic preservation and give preservationists and others from South Dakota and surrounding states an opportunity to compare experiences and exchange ideas.

Donovan Rypkema,Keynote Speaker

The highlight of the conference will be a presentation and conversation with Donovan Rypkema, principal of PlaceEconomics of Washington, D.C.  A native of Rapid City and graduate of the University of South Dakota and Columbia University, Rypkema pioneered historic preservation in downtown Rapid City before establishing his consulting business in Washington.  He is generally regarded as the leading American authority on the economics of historic preservation and consults across United States and the world.       

Other topics covered will include comparisons of preservation methodologies utilized in South Dakota and other neighboring states. The conference begins in the evening of May 16^th with a reception at the Dakota Brick House on Main Street. The Rypkema presentation and panel discussion is scheduled for the morning of May 17^th at the Coyote Twin Red Steakhouse Theater, followed by a picnic lunch at the Austin Whittemore House, home of the CCHS.   Afternoon panels will follow at the Edith Siegrist Public Library’s Kozak Room.  The conference concludes on the morning of May 18 with another series of panels and presentations at the W.H. Over Museum. The conference is open to the public.

A registration fee of $20 will be charged for the three day conference.  The Vermillion Chamber and Development Company is handing registration. 

For further information please contact Ted Muenster (tmuenster@vyn.midco.net).