Baltimore’s Washington Monument has just received more national recognition for its $6.5 million restoration.
The Associated Builders and Contractors, a national organization, selected the 201-year-old monument at Charles and Monument streets to receive one of its top honors: a National Excellence in Construction Eagle Award in the category of historic preservation and renovation.
The award was presented during ABC’s 27th annual awards ceremony, held this year in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. The competition is designed to honor the nation’s best construction projects as selected by a panel of industry experts.
The award for the Washington Monument restoration went to Lewis Contractors of Owings Mills, the general contractor for the project, and the Mount Vernon Place Conservancy, the nonprofit group that led the restoration effort in conjunction with Baltimore City.
The honor brings to 11 the number of awards presented for the monument’s restoration, making it one of the most praised restoration projects in the city. Robert Mills was the original architect. The cornerstone was laid on July 4, 1815, and construction was largely complete by 1829.
Other recognition has come from the Baltimore chapter of the American Institute of Architects, The Baltimore Architecture Foundation, Baltimore Heritage and Preservation Maryland.
“It’s not surprising that a restoration of such excellence has garnered such a long list of awards and honors,” said Nicholas Redding, executive director of Preservation Maryland, in a statement. “To have a project of this caliber in Baltimore’s backyard is an outstanding accomplishment for not only the project team but Baltimore preservation community as a whole.”
“That this outstanding project is recognized on the national level speaks to the talent and resources we have in Baltimore to do top notch work,” said Kathleen Lane, executive director of the Baltimore AIA.
Lance Humphries, the conservatory’s executive director, said, “Everyone involved with this project recognized that this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to restore an incredibly rare, nationally important historic monument. Everyone gave 100 percent – and the results show.”
