 awrence Walker and his wife, Phyllis, had long been concerned that more and more of Charleston's
finest historic houses were being purchased by people who maintained them as secondary vacation
residences, sometimes living in the properties no more than a few weekends a year or only during
special events or holidays. Such absentee ownership, the Walkers felt, threatened to drain the life
and vitality from neighborhoods in the very heart of the city.
As property values within the city's Old & Historic District skyrocketed in the years following
Hurricane Hugo (1989), fewer working and younger families have been able to afford to live downtown.
Sections of the historic district began to change from healthy neighborhoods full of children and
activity into sterile environments, which were beautiful to see, yet devoid of real people living
there on a full-time basis.
The Walkers were determined to ensure that their house in Ansonborough would not become a seldom-used
trophy house. Feeling that protecting the physical structure of their house was not enough, they decided
to not only protect the exterior and the interior of their house, but also to make a statement about primary
ownership by donating an owner-occupied, primary residence easement provision to Historic Charleston Foundation.
This was not the first easement donated by Walker, who served as Executive Director of Historic Charleston
Foundation from 1987-1993, as well as President of the Foundation's Board of Trustees. The Walkers had
previously donated façade and interior easements on the house.
"Just as the Walker family's exterior easements were progressive in the early 1980s, their 2003 easement
donation has raised the standard once again," said Kitty Robinson, HCF's Executive Director. "The Walkers'
new easement donation is truly a milestone for Historic Charleston Foundation and preservation."
|
|
