One proponent of that movement is Michael Sackler, an architectwith Ives, Schier & Lesser Architecture Studio in Fair Lawn.While structures with historic significance continue to be amongthe most popular candidates for preservation, IS&L is seeing astepped-up number of restoration efforts prompted by environmentalconsciousness.

"People have always been interested in preserving existingbuildings, especially when the property has some type ofsignificance in the community," Sackler says. "More recently, theconservational benefits of reusing older structures have become amajor focus. In short, reuse is one of the best things you can doto preserve resources, and building modernization also frequentlyallows the incorporation of energy-efficient elements. In addition,depending on the level of the rehabilitation, repairs can be farless costly than rebuilding."

One example, Sackler says, is PS 34 in Jersey City, designed bylocally renowned architect John Rowland and built in 1911. Theaging school building was in need of window replacement to correcta growing water infiltration issue, and IS&L was retained asdesigner for the project. The firm brought a preservationspecialist to consult on the building's historic terra cotta andbrickwork.