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Sure, the building had already been saved, so Stevie had to figure out some other way to make a buck.

A few corrections - without apologies to whoever makes them needed

1) The dedication of the Ted Conrad Rotunda actually took place at a ceremony, in the Rotunda, attended by hundreds of local activists, including Sam Pesin and Ted's family, about 13 years ago. It certainly was not Sam's original idea as one of the recent newspaper articles reports. I trust that Sam did not intend to leave that impression.

2) The naming of the Ted Conrad Rotunda was my idea. Within a few days after Ted's death, I hand-delivered a letter to the then County Executive and also to the editor of the Jersey Journal. I proposed that a fitting memorial to Ted would be the dedication of the Ted Conrad Rotunda.

3) The ceremony followed in December. It was not just a memorial service. It included a naming of the rotunda, exactly as I had proposed, in Ted's honor.

4) What has been missing all those years since is the promised plaque.

6) Over the years, various things got in the way of the plaque. The then County Exec turned out to be a crook and resigned in disgrace. The subsequently elected administration was unaware of the unfulfilled promise - and this was compounded later by an unfortunate misunderstanding of Ted's role in saving many valuable items from the rampant theft that was allowed when the building was abandoned. Without his courage, vision and tenacity, recreating those treasures that now grace the building would not have been possible. He was a hero.

Until someone told me of that misunderstanding, I was not aware it had put a freeze on things. But more than a year ago, maybe two years ago, I found myself standing in the rotunda near two of the principal people in the misunderstanding. They were just a few feet from each other, chatting with different people.

At that point, in front of those bystanders, I literally took each of them by the hand, pulled them aside and put their hands together and asked them, in honor of Ted's memory, to resolve their mis-understanding and work to get the plaque installed.

On occasion, after that, when I encountered either of them, I gently nudged each about progress towards the plaque. They each were sincere and responsive.

Last night's ceremony was the eventual result. But, I was not on the program. I was not even invited. I learned of it through the various public notices.

I must say that I was deeply hurt and disappointed that my idea, my inspiration, my suggestion for public expression of love for Ted Conrad and my effort to bring parties together were ignored by the official program. I brought my feelings to Tom DeGise only a few minutes prior to the ceremony. His opening remarks gracefully corrected the record and I greatly appreciate his doing so.

It is not a popular thing in Jersey City to say such things out loud, but I am not an office holder, have no reputation to polish or any benefit to gain by staying silent about the truth. If anyone is offended by my public position, that's too bad. It's the unvarnished truth.

Joe Harkins

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Actually, back in the 1980s, Steve Hyman supplied the copper roofing for the building.

When I read this I thought - what a damn shame.

If Stevie Hyman had been around in 1966 he could have hired his phalanx of lawyers, gotten the old courthouse knocked down and "done something great for Jersey City."

Instead, we now have this 100 year old beaux arts eyesore that's no longer usable for its original purpose.

Think of how many McHomes Stevie could have built for us!!!

Tragic.

Model maker who was model citizen

The legendary Theodore Conrad being honored with dedication at courthouse

By: Ricardo Kaulessar, Reporter Staff Writer

When there was a historical landmark or quality-of-life issue in Jersey City that needed to be addressed, the late Theodore Conrad was usually either in the middle of the fray or leading the charge.

Among some of Conrad's accomplishments as an activist for the last 35 years of his life was helping in the creation of Liberty State Park, helping preserve the Landmark Loew's Jersey Theatre in Jersey City, and stopping Kennedy Boulevard from being turned into a superhighway.

And then there was his effort in the 1960s to save the old Hudson County Courthouse at 583 Newark Ave. from being demolished to make way for either a building or parking lot. He fought for about 20 years to save the courthouse (now known as the Justice William J. Brennan Court House) until it was restored to its original glory and reopened for business in 1985.

He was also responsible for having the courthouse listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1970, preventing it from demolition.

This coming Thursday, Nov. 29 at 7 p.m. he will be honored for his efforts at a dedication ceremony. The courthouse rotunda will be known as The Theodore Conrad Memorial Rotunda, with a plaque describing who Conrad was.

Ceremony coming

Sam Pesin of the Friends of the Liberty State Park, who spurred the ceremony by mentioning at a Hudson County Freeholders meeting last year that there had never been a dedication, called Conrad a "pioneer" for his activism.

Conrad passed away on Aug. 19, 1994 at the age of 84. A memorial service in honor of Conrad was held at the courthouse a month after his passing.

Conrad's daughter, Doris Brown, said last week the news of the dedication ceremony is a testament to the dedication her father showed in serving his community, and the example he set for activists to follow.

"I hope people will learn, when they study what my father and others like Audrey Zapp, Morris Pesin, and Dr. Ethel Lawner did, are that it is the efforts of regular people who can make change in the world," Brown said.

Born in 1910, designed NYC building models

Conrad was born on May 19, 1910 to German immigrants in a house on 31 Griffith St. in the city's Heights section. According to Brown, her father's interest in architecture and design was piqued at an early age by seeing his grandfather construct homes and buildings in his neighborhood.

Conrad studied draftsmanship at Dickinson High School in Jersey City, and then attended Pratt Institute in New York City. He then landed a job with the prestigious architectural firm of Harvey Walley Corbett in 1932 during the Great Depression. There, he designed the models for the Metropolitan Life Insurance building and Rockefeller Center, and became a respected figure in the architectural world, working alongside such giants as his good friend Phillip Johnson as well as developing friendships with icons such as the late John F. Kennedy.

Even with his success in the field of model making, he still maintained a deep love for his hometown, always keeping a home on Ogden Avenue, which his family still owns.

"Everything that he did was a passion because his family had lived [in Jersey City] for so long," Brown said. It was that love that led to him, upon turning 50, to pursue a new chapter in his life: activism.

Brown said it started with his beloved Riverview-Fisk Park, located on Ogden Avenue not far from his longtime home, being considered as the site for a senior housing complex.

Nearby residents like Conrad fought that plan and it was scrapped. Then, he heard of plans to take down the old Hudson County Courthouse on Newark Avenue.

Saving the courthouse

Conrad called the courthouse in an article he wrote in the 1960s an "architectural gem." As a student of architectural history and a world-class model maker, he had good reason to make such a claim. Built in 1910, the courthouse designed by Jersey City resident Hugh Roberts was constructed in the beaux-arts or "Modern Renaissance" style for $3.3 million.

Resembling Italian Renaissance palaces of old, the six-story courthouse exterior of the courthouse was built with granite walls, bronze window frames and doors, Corinthian columns, and a low flat copper dome. Also, eight columns of Italian green marble rise from the second to the fourth floor in the center of the building forming an interior court covered by a dome.

But the highlight of the courthouse is the works of muralists Edwin H. Blashfield, Charles Yardley Turner, Kenyon Cox, and Howard Pyle throughout the building, depicting the history of Hudson County.

However, in the 1960s, Hudson County government looked to relocate courtroom operations to the then recently opened Hudson County Administration Building next door at 595 Newark Ave.

The historic theater

Conrad's prot?g?, Colin Egan, met Conrad in the early 1980s. They worked alongside each other throughout the 1980s and 1990s until Conrad's death to save the historic Loew's Theatre in Journal Square from being demolished. Egan had many conversations with Conrad about the efforts to save the courthouse, and looks forward to Thursday's dedication ceremony.

"The courthouse battle set the mold for all other preservation battles to come," Egan said. "When Ted and others were fighting to save the courthouse, not many people knew about preservation."

Egan said among the things that Conrad did to save the courthouse was go to numerous freeholder meetings, lead the collection of 20,000 signatures to stop demolition and pulled off one of the great citizen-led coups over the Hudson County government run by legendary powerbroker John V. Kenny.

"When Ted stood up at a freeholders meeting and says they can't tear down the courthouse because he put it on the National Register, I could only imagine the gears of the political machine at the time grinding to a halt," Egan said.

Brown said her father in later years looked back with pride at what he did in saving the courthouse but without being boastful.

"Dad had a thing where while he had a sense of accomplishment, but to him, it's what you're supposed to do," Brown said. "He always told me, 'If you live in a community and you're not participating, then you have no right to complain about it.' "

Comments on this story can be sent to rkaulessar@hudsonreporter.com

You are cordially invited to the dedication of the Theodore Conrad Memorial Rotunda Thursday, November 29th at 7:00 p.m. in the Justice William J. Brennan Court House (corner Newark & Baldwin Avenues right outside Journal Square) Where & When The Hudson County William J. Brennan Court House 583 Newark (corner Newark & Baldwin) Jersey City, New Jersey Thursday, November 29, 2007 7:00 p.m. Ted Conrad - A Life Dedicated to Jersey City and Historic Preservation Theodore Conrad led the campaign that saved and restored the Hudson County Justice William J. Brennan Court House -- one of the most architecturally significant public spaces in the United States -- when it had been scheduled for demolition. It is for this singular civic achievement that he is being honored on Thursday. Ted was born on Griffith Street and Ogden Avenue in Jersey City's Heights. He was trained as an architect and developed a thriving business as a maker of architectural models, contributing to the designs of some of the greatest buildings of the mid 20th Century. Yet despite his success, Ted never thought to move "up and out" of Jersey City; instead, he ran his studio in a historic industrial building on Ogden Avenue. In over eight decades of life, he never moved more than a few hundred yards from where he was born. Beginning in the 1960s, Ted Conrad devoted much of his time to preserving Hudson County landmarks, promoting appreciation of local history and improving our quality of life. Among his contributions, in addition to saving the Court House, Ted - * Organized the Riverview Neighborhood Association; * Was a leader, along with Morris Pesin, of the effort that created Liberty State Park; * Was a founder of Friends of the Loew's; * Turned a portion of his Ogden Avenue shop into a small museum of local history; * Was a leading activist on a wide variety of civic issues. As the father of historic preservation in Hudson County, Ted continues to be an inspiration to new generations of local preservationists and all civic activists. Please join us in honoring him and the Conrad family. Today's editorial in The Jersey Journal: "We'll Look Up, and Remember Conrad" Wednesday, November 28, 2007 They are finally getting around to the business of honoring the man most responsible for the saving of the Hudson County Justice William J. Brennan Court House at Newark and Baldwin avenues in Jersey City. Tomorrow at 7 p.m., the public is invited to honor one of the city's greatest figures, Theodore Conrad, by naming the courthouse's rotunda after the man who saved the magnificent Beaux Arts structure from demolition. A graduate of Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, Conrad pioneered the use of Plexiglas and metal for models, rather than the traditional wood and cardboard. Modeling was the form used by architects before computers provided pre-construction designs. He was tops in his field, having modeled New York City's Chase Manhattan, Metropolitan Life buildings and even the Air Force Academy in Colorado. It has been often reported how Conrad's model gave Jacqueline Kennedy her first view of what her husband's grave would look like at Arlington National Cemetery. The father of Hudson County preservation defended historic architecture, spending much of his time fighting to preserve landmarks, many of which can be found on state and national landmark registers. Among his greatest accomplishments was preserving the imposing county courthouse. Hugh Roberts, a Jersey City architect, designed the lavish courthouse. It cost $3.3 million to construct, a sum considered outrageous by many at the time. What would such a building cost today? Built with granite from Maine, the building has Corinthian pillars, ornate interior balconies, carved ornamental scrolls. It opened for justice on Sept. 20, 1910, and was in use until 1966, when the courts and offices were moved to the adjacent Hudson County Administration Building. In the late 1960s, Conrad headed a citizens committee to save the courthouse. In 1970, the group managed to get the building listed in the National Register of Historic Places and by the 1980s the building was again in use. Naming the rotunda for the Jersey City native seems appropriate. Enter the courthouse and look upward in the rotunda and you will see paintings of zodiac figures around the glass dome, representing the passage of a year. Thanks to Conrad's efforts, the county's most impressive landmark has been in existence for nearly 100 years. ? 2007 The Jersey Journal ? 2007 NJ.com All Rights Reserved. Articles related to Ted?s accomplishments in the architectural and preservation arenas: