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I reported last week's @99piorg. It's about the place I live, Santa Fe, NM, and the complicated legacy of historic preservation here. If you'll indulge me in a THREAD (1/10) https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/stuccoed-in-time/
Santa Fe is a city with a very distinctive architectural look. The style is known as Pueblo Revival. It draws from traditional indigenous pueblo architecture and the area's old Spanish missions. (2/10)
The style was enshrined in Santa Fe's first city plan, back in 1912. At the time, Santa Fe was searching for an economic lifeline and they settled on tourism. All new development in the city, they decided, should be done "in harmony with its ancient character." (3/10)
Through the 1920s, 30s, and 40s, local preservationists were wildly successful in their project. Architects like John Gaw Meem figured out how to adapt ancient construction techniques for the modern era. The adobe look became the city's architectural brand (4/10)
Then, in 1957, the city passed a Historic Zoning Ordinance creating a big historic district in the middle of the city. It *required* the Santa Fe style in the city center. The district was home to mostly Hispanic families with deep roots in Santa Fe. (5/10)
Through all this, tourism was indeed growing. Then, in the 80s and 90s, it went absolutely bonkers. Santa Fe suddenly became one of the hottest destinations in the world. Here's one of the earliest TV ads I could find promoting the city 
(6/10)
(6/10)
A lot of visitors bought second homes & the oldest neighborhoods began to gentrify. Adobe became desirable to outside buyers. Now the historic districts get high-end marketing like this (7/10)
Over time the city added more code and more restrictions. Height limits went into place. The historic districts expanded. Commercial districts were encouraged to adopt the adobe look so now we have (my personal fave) a fauxdobe IHOP. I do love this place (8/10)
There are charming elements to the Santa Fe style, for sure. But our attachment to a historic look has also contributed to the city's housing crisis. It's helped to drive old families out of the historic districts. It's made it difficult to build at higher densities... (9/10)
... it's made Santa Fe unaffordable to many of the people who created this historic style in the first place. There's so much more in the episode and it's totally relevant to what's happening in Santa Fe today. Hope you'll listen! 
(10/10) https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/stuccoed-in-time/
(10/10) https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/stuccoed-in-time/
