Maintaining historical integrity in a changing world

History and tradition have been on my mind quite a bit lately.

Two things in particular have been eating up more mental real estate than I should probably afford.

First is the ongoing conflict over how to best restore the old Hopper Elementary School (previously Stephen F. Austin Elementary School) at 500 Abell St. The Wharton County Heritage Partnership (WCHP) is working to get the building listed on the National Register of Historic Places, something the developer of the site supports. Both sides are in agreement that the exterior of the building will be preserved and maintained. Where they disagree is on the inside.

Developer David Bowlin, who has a contract to buy the property from the Wharton Independent School District, wants to turn the school into housing units, converting classrooms into apartments, and building single-family homes on the playground. This would be done through an $8.75 million grant from HUD through the Texas General Land Office.

Members of the Wharton County Heritage Partnership (WCHP) wants to see the building preserved and utilized for educational and community purposes. Member Jeffrey Blair told the Wharton City Council that his organization would like to buy the property and partner with the Wharton ISD to provide programming there. He said he envisions a place like the Northside Center in El Campo. He said the school district, Wharton County Junior College, and other nonprofit entities in town could make use of the space for classes and community programs.

Blair said the WCHP is not opposed to Bowlin using the grant to build housing, they just want the grant moved to another site. Bowlin said he and the city would lose the grant if the project is moved.

Both designs for the building are admirable and worth consideration. Looking at this objectively, I think Bowlin’s take on it will ultimately win out. That’s because money talks. He has control of the grant and has the resources to make the project happen. It will bring new life to a vacant building while maintaining the structural and historical integrity of the property.

The amateur historian in me leans toward the side of the WCHP because once the facility is altered it will be nearly impossible to change it back. For a case in point, just look at the history of the Alamo and the struggle now to restore the compound grounds.

Another disadvantage for the WCHP is, once again, financial. Nonprofit organizations, and historical ones in particular, typically do not have the funds to own, restore and maintain property. There has been no plan presented that would explain how the organization could fund the purchase and restoration, let alone maintain it over the long haul. If they do have such a plan, I have not seen it.

It is not unusual for historic buildings to have modern uses different than what the building was originally intended for. While the WCHP’s play would maintain the current interior structure of the building, its use would still be altered from that of a school.

One of the things going in Bowlin’s favor is that the city desperately needs more housing, especially affordable housing. This would provide a dozen or so homes that could be regulated as affordable.

It will be interesting to see how all of this plays out.

 

Sugar Land Skeeters, 2012-2021

This week the Sugar Land Skeeters announced they are having a party on Jan. 29 to announce the re-branding of the franchise. Last year the baseball club left the independent Atlantic League of Professional Baseball and became the AAA farm team for the Houston Astros.

After 10 years as the Skeeters, the Astros – which purchased majority ownership of the team last year – are changing the name. It was leaked almost immediately and first broke on TV by Fox 26 Sports Director Mark Berman that the new name will be the Sugar Land Space Cowboys.

Predictably the news spread like wildfire on Facebook with Skeeters fans absolutely hating the new name and the logo that leaked out with it.

I’m bummed. I was one of the multitude that didn’t like the Skeeters name when it was chosen, but it quickly grew on me. I’m one of the team’s biggest fans. I assumed the Skeeters name would be around forever. But Astros ownership made it clear that it wants to keep a space theme running throughout the organization, keeping with the Astros name. (Could a change for the Corpus Christi Hooks be next?)

Honestly, I think Space Cowboys is a great name for team in Texas. Space and cowboys are both very symbolic of the Lone Star State, especially the Houston area. I just hate losing the Skeeters name and the incredible history that has been associated with it for the last 10 seasons. In eight seasons with the Atlantic League, the Skeeters won two championships (2016, 2018), played in two other championship series, made the playoffs five times, and also won the championship of the four-team pop-up Constellation Energy League it created in 2020 during the pandemic.

In the first AAA season with the Astros, the Skeeters went 71-49 and won the Eastern Division title. In 10 years the Skeeters are 689-562 for a .551 winning percentage. I’m proud of the Skeeters, the owners, management, players, staff, and even the mascot Swatson. It will be very interesting to see the new logos, schemes, and mascot when all is revealed on Jan. 29. I’m sure in time fans will embrace the Space Cowboys, just as we did the Skeeters.

The main thing is we want to keep the winning tradition alive. I just hope they don’t kill the family friendliness at Constellation Field and the affordability of the games. If the last season under the Astros is any indicator, we’re going to lose out on that end.

I guess one of the constants in history is change and whether it be an old school or a favorite baseball team, we all must adjust to change and make the best of it.