Press Releases

The Restoration & Renovation Exhibition And Conference On Growth Path: March Event Features Largest Exhibit Hall And Conference Ever

NORTH READING, MASSACHUSETTS, January 18, 2002 --- Pre-registration for Restoration & Renovation 2002 has officially opened. In spite of economic slowdown and the impact of last September's tragic events on business travel, Restore Media, LLC, organizers of the event, are predicting the show will achieve new milestones. Restoration & Renovation 2002 is scheduled for March 20-23 at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston's historic Back Bay section.

With over two months until show time, Restore Media reports brisk exhibit sales and an exhibit hall that has already surpassed their 2001 show floor in square footage, making it the largest exhibition in the show's nine-year history. The conference program is also the largest to date, featuring eighty seminars, special workshops and regular conference sessions over four days. The rich educational offerings include three keynote addresses (one each day of the exhibition) with headliner speakers and two general sessions - all free of charge to anyone attending the show.

Managing Director Ellen Glew reports strong market response to the Restoration & Renovation 2002 announcement and is predicting a healthy visitor turnout. "The number of reply cards we received to our postcard mailings is higher than anything I have seen since we launched the show in 1992," said Glew. "I believe it is due in part to the new features we have added to both the exhibition and the conference, in part to our improved marketing strategy, and in part to market conditions. When the economy slows down, people focus more on investment in preserving and improving their existing building portfolio. Furthermore, overall the preservation ethic has really taken hold in this country in a big way. Americans have fallen in love with history and things historical."

Under the theme, "Preserving the Community: Looking into the Twenty-first Century," one hundred twenty leading experts in the fields of architecture, construction and historic preservation will share their experiences and expertise with thousands of Restoration & Renovation who will gather in Boston for the industry event. Each of the exhibition days (March 21-23) will kick off with a keynote address. The keynote speakers include: William Hudnut, former Mayor of Indianapolis and Congressman, now a senior fellow with the Urban Land Institute, who will speak on "What Matters: Creating a Sense of Place and Community;" Pulitzer Prize-winning architecture critic and architect, Robert Campbell, who will address the topic, "Landmarks Past and Future-What Should We Save, Alter or Replace?"; and Nicholas A. Basbanes, author, editor and former journalist, who will talk about "Libraries as Repositories of Our Cultural Heritage."

The Restoration & Renovation 2002 Conference Program introduces the Executive Summit, a new day-long, pre-show educational program on the business aspects of the preservation industry. Produced by Restore Media, in partnership with the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the Historic Preservation Development Council, the topic of this inaugural edition of the Summit is: "Making Small to Mid-Sized Preservation Projects Profitable." It will discuss the financial tools available to make restoration projects up to $2.5 million work financially, including detailed advice on how to use the federal historic rehabilitation tax credit program.

Other new aspects of the Conference Program include a wider offering for interior designers, divided into two tracks on Residential and Contract Design, an expanded track on Landscapes & Streetscapes, and enhanced coverage of the application of high technology to the field of preservation.

Visitors to the exhibit hall will notice some new features there as well. The Techniques & Technologies Showcase, where exhibitors give special, in-depth presentations, will now be the venue on Thursday, March 21 and Friday, March 22 for a new event, the Palladio Awards for Excellence in Traditional Design. Co-produced by Restore Media, Traditional Building, and Period Homes magazines, the Palladio Awards recognize outstanding achievements in eight different categories. Project teams will present visuals on their award-winning projects. The new R&R Live! area of the exhibit hall will be the location for ongoing demonstrations of traditional trades and crafts. The New Product Showcase, situated in the registration area, will highlight in special back-lit panel displays the array of product innovations that can be found in the exhibit hall.

All visitors to the exhibition may attend the three keynote addresses and two general sessions free of charge. The general sessions focus on the National Trust's efforts to establish a federal historic rehabilitation tax credit program for homeowners and on training programs for the traditional trades.

On-line registration is available at www.restorationandrenovation.com. Complete program brochures can be downloaded from the Web site or can be obtained by contacting Restore Media at 800.982.6247, 978.664.8066, info@restoremedia.com. Deadline for pre-registration, which is strongly suggested to ensure seating at certain events, is February 28.