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2015 Winter Remembrances Newsletter 1 Remembrances Newsletter of the Schertz Historical Preservation Committee Winter Edition 2015 The Committee welcomes a new member to its ranks. `William Nolan Dandy was approved for membership by Schertz City Council and began serving as a Committee member as of our January 2015 meeting. Welcome aboard William! Saint Joseph’s Chapel was the subject of a feature article in the December issue of Schertz Magazine. The article was written by Committee members Jim and Diana Webb. This quarter’s Committee Remembrances Special Edition Article 2015-1 is titled: Schertz in the 1970s – City in Flux. The Committee’s efforts to amend the City of Schertz Unified Development Code (UDC) regarding inclusion of a “historic overlay district” concept has shifted to supporting a proposal for instituting a “Main Street Preservation Incentive Program”. A presentation was made to City Council at a September workshop and another more detailed presentation will be presented by city staff in the near future. Schertz Executive Director Brian James briefed the Committee on the current status of the project at the Committee’s October meeting. The Outreach Subcommittee continues work on an initiative to try to involve city youth in the matters of Schertz history and city government. The school district National Honor Society students are engaged in preparing biographical surveys of Schertz senior citizens and will publish their findings soon. There is also a school district art and essay contest that centers its subject on Schertz history. There may also be a student led art mural project celebrating Schertz fire protection history. 2 At its December 2, 2014 meeting, the Schertz City Council approved the Committee’s recommendation for selection of the property at 505 Exchange Street as a “Landmark Property”. Landmark Property is defined as: “Any property that presents itself as a unique feature of the City of Schertz landscape (community) due to either its nostalgic, aesthetic, architectural, or symbolic attributes and which could or will have an enduring impact on the community’s cultural identity.” A proposal for an archeological survey at the site of the former Saint Joseph School was proposed to the church administration at Saint Peter and Paul Catholic Church. The Church administration declined the offer for survey. The Committee has assigned a subcommittee the task of evaluating the possibility of naming Schertz’s Aviation Heights Subdivision as the City’s second “Heritage Neighborhood”. The significance of the neighborhood as relates to the City’s early history is set forth in last quarter’s Remembrances 2014-7 article. Work continues on the development of a Schertz photo history book that will survey Schertz history from 1850 through 2010. Should anyone have a photo that is a reminder of the city’s history please consider contacting Dean Weirtz for possible inclusion in the book. The subcommittee on cemetery journaling has completed a master listing of all Schertz area grave sites. The master listing will be maintained at the Schertz Public Library (history and genealogy room). The listing allows easy discovery of the whereabouts of family members/relatives/friends buried in Schertz area cemeteries. The Committee Outreach Program adopted a restoration/preservation project during the month of October that entails assisting the small congregation of Vineyard Church (207 First Street) with the exterior restoration of its church building. This church building is a designated Schertz Landmark Property based upon its early construction (approximately 1900) and its many uses in support of Schertz community life. The restoration effort has begun and exterior paint scrapping and the initial primer paint coat has been applied. Further progress awaits warmer weather. Committee book sales (“Schertz, Texas – The Story of Great Ancestry, Legacy and Development”) were brisk during the month of December with more than a dozen sales made. Committee officer positions for the next calendar year have been filled. The annual resource inventory was conducted in early January and results reported in the Annual Report to City Council. .