To the editor:

Looking toward a historic church a few blocks east of a local coffee shop, I wondered if the new buildings near Ninth and New Hampshire fit into the context of Lawrence. Discussing them with friends and colleagues, we have wondered about the neo-histrionic 901 New Hampshire while it turns a blind eye toward the south with no windows or solar panels for renewable energy. We also wonder about the renewable energy aspects of the “transformer-like” small hotel that seems to want to spring forward into a new movie character.

As a past Historic Resources commissioner, and former board member of Lawrence Preservation Alliance, I hope that many of you become more involved in the approval process of these radical changes to the fabric of downtown Lawrence. For comparison the new library and its institutional horizontality blend in very well next to the modern post office and nearby commercial neighbors.

Next up? The comparatively gigantic proposal slammed up against the 1871 Lucy Hobbs Taylor home at 809 Vermont, a National Register of Historic Landmarks site.