In 2001, Trust Named Telluride’s Valley Floor One of Nation’s 11 ‘Most Endangered Places

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Richard Moe, the longest serving president in the 60-year history of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, announced Tuesday that he will retire from the post in the spring of 2010. Moe, 72, who has been at the helm of the nation’s leading preservation organization for 17 years, said he has told the board that he will stay until a successor has been named, probably next spring.

“It has been an enormous privilege to be associated with the National Trust over these years,” Moe said in a statement. “It has been the most fulfilling professional experience I have ever had. Both the people and the places I’ve encountered have been fabulous, and I will never forget them.

“But I feel it is time for me and time for the National Trust. Every organization needs to revitalize itself from time to time, and this is the time for the National Trust to seek a generational change to take it to a new level. There is never a perfect time, but the Trust’s financial base is solid and its programmatic momentum is growing all the time. So it’s as good a time as any.”

J. Clifford Hudson of Oklahoma City, the chairman of the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s board, said of Moe, “We understand Dick’s decision to retire, but wish it weren’t so.  His impact on the Trust – its focus, resources and leadership in the preservation movement – has been remarkable.  He leaves the Trust well positioned for an exciting future.  His successor will join an organization and a movement greatly advanced through the talents of Dick Moe.”

During his tenure Moe has expanded the reach of the National Trust for Historic Preservation by trying to make preservation more relevant by using it to improve the quality of life in communities all over the country. Currently the organization is committed to a sustainability program that focuses on the environmental value of “recycling” older buildings for new uses and retrofitting them for greater energy efficiency.

“Historic preservation may not be quite mainstream yet,” Moe said, “but it is gaining greater acceptance every day. The most vibrant and popular sections of almost every American city are historic districts, places like DuPont Circle in Washington, LoDo in Denver and South Beach in Miami. People love places that have retained their historic character and that have come back to life.”

In 2001, the National Trust for Historic Preservation placed Telluride’s Valley Floor on its list of “America’s Most Endangered Places.

Moe said he is proud of weaning the National Trust from reliance on federal funding more than a decade ago and in the process nearly doubling the annual budget to its current $55 million. He said he is also proud of the National Trust’s role in preventing the Disney Corp. from building a theme park in the historic Northern Piedmont of Virginia; in the decade-long restoration of President Lincoln’s Cottage in Washington; in the purchase at auction of the threatened Mies van der Rohe iconic modernist Farnsworth House in Plano, Ill. in 2003; in building the capacity of state and local preservation organizations; and in the major intervention of the National Trust in New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina.

Moe had earlier served as chief of staff to Vice President Walter Mondale and a member of President Carter’s senior staff from 1977 to 1981. He is a native of Minnesota.