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A D.C. Developer Balances Preservation and Progress - Preservation On-line 7/11/08
In downtown Washington, D.C., the old Capital Children's Museum faced an uncertain future. The museum, housed in an 1870s Catholic convent, needed a new space and ultimately found one, in nearby Maryland.
But what about the 19th-century buildings that once housed the Little Sisters of the Poor, their red-brick fronts, cupolas, and spires evocative of the Victorian architecture that made its mark on the nation's capital?
Enter Jim Abdo, a D.C.-based developer who has made a career out of walking the line between preservation and modernity. Abdo tries to preserve the past while incorporating the latest interior finishes. "It's what you see, but also what you don't see, that's important," says Abdo, who recently served a three-year stint on the board of the D.C. Preservation League....
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