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Restoration/Preservation/Design
Projects completed under this category include a wide variety of new construction, restoration, and preservation work that employ the most conscientious approach to design for the client.
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National Register of Historic Places
Broad experience in writing nominations to the National Register of Historic Places include districts of many kinds with as many as 300 properties to just a handful, and individual buildings and structures under a variety of areas including homes and farms, water towers, depots, and many others.
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INDOT Documentation/Byway
Qualified to complete historical investigation work, projects have included interpretative pieces, documentation, and analysis of impact on historic resources.
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Miscellaneous Services
Other work includes feasibility studies for development purposes, historical writing, and technical drawing for documentation.
Kurt’s Story
Kurt West Garner began his professional career in 1996 as a project architect with a small firm in Plymouth, Indiana, where he gained critical knowledge of historic preservation methods, research and design. Garner began his business, KW Garner Consulting & Design, in 2008. It focuses on preservation, design, and research throughout Indiana.
This has led to projects in nearly half of Indiana’s 92 counties since 2008 including over 125 National Register of Historic Places nominations authored and five multiple property documentation forms completed for the National Park Service, a variety of other feasibility studies and design work, and other historical investigations.
The overriding design philosophy is born out of the belief that there is a spiritual connection people have to their environment, whether this is created out of something new or revived from something that is old. This is why design is guided by interaction with the client and not by a specific style or trend. With preservation, buildings, just like people, have a story to tell. This story-telling leads to giving building’s their dignity back in restoration projects, and securing a heritage for future generations.
Garner works with private individuals, large and small non-profit organizations, municipalities and private businesses. He is a prequalified consultant for the Indiana Department of Natural Resources Division of Historic Preservation and Archaeology and for the Indiana Department of Transportation. Garner’s passion for history is evident in how his work is carried out, and it is contagious in his working relationships. Garner considers his work a way to honor those who came before us and the legacy we leave those who come after.