Save the Bungalows sheds quiet diplomacy to actually be heard

--and it might actually work. Lately in Houston, preservation issues and awareness (such as the recent River Oaks happenings) have arisen and garnered a decent amount of attention. In historic neighborhoods where original homes are being decimated and replaced by tacky, oversized homes, Save the Bungalows advocates for city laws to help protect these homes.

Just when you thought Houston embodied the epitome of apathy, two folks have gotten the attention of not only City Hall and the newspapers, but also citizens who want to get involved. Sheila Sorvari and Mark Sterling, the group's founders, have the right idea, too: be heard, and take action now. From the article in the Chronicle:

"This is a short-term project," said Sorvari of Save the Bungalows, which she launched in April in an effort to form a coalition of residents to petition city leaders to create new preservation laws. "Either we achieve our goals in the next few years, or there won't be anything left to save."

"It's harder to put up a sign than it is to tear down a building in this city," Sterling added. "Seventy-two demo and sewer permits were pulled in Houston Heights in the six months ending on May 1."

Save the Bungalow's web site has all the information about the cause and how to take action. We just hope that the big guys downtown help out (even though we just know this horrible McMansion phase has to die out soon), before we lose even more interesting and historic parts of our notoriously short-sighted city.

Photo: Flickr user inkoluv