national register nomination for boulevard park historic

professional is to resist decay in the form of damage to the physical structure of the
building or inappropriate construction in its vicinity. Fitch mentions folk architecture and
native practices within the context of their value to anthropology, and the benefits of low-
tech materials as thermal insulation. He does not address the cultural value of indigenous
people beyond their contributions to material culture.
Fitch’s work is a product of the 1960s, when historic preservation in the United
States was first becoming a professional occupation. Perhaps because of the newness of
the field, Fitch provides many European examples of preservation programs, such as
Polish reconstruction efforts following the devastation of World War II. Preservation
advocates during this era faced a powerful tide of modernism that promoted demolition
of old urban neighborhoods. Even within this context, Fitch’s opposition to urban
renewal derives from the aesthetic value of the buildings, not the buildings’ occupants:
“Thus, the next stage of central-city regeneration will be one in which the massive
‘slum clearance’ of recent decades will be replaced by the discriminating insertion
of new buildings and facilities to reinforce desirable neighborhood patterns and
life-styles; where wholly degenerated urban tissue is surgically removed or, if
artistically and historical significant, carefully restored; where old buildings are
rehabilitated for new uses not envisioned by the original owners; where the
existing infrastructure of services and utilities is modernized; and where
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