Thomas Lozanovski, a fifth-year architecture student, was inspired by a flyer in S. R. Crown Hall to participate in the Charles E. Peterson Prize competition, hosted by the National Park Service’s Heritage Documentation Programs. The competition recognizes the best set of measured drawings prepared by students according to Heritage Documentation Programs standards.
The Peterson Prize is named after Charles E. Peterson, a key figure in establishing the Historic American Building Survey (HABS) program in 1933. This program set methodologies for surveying and documenting historic sites for public benefit, as noted by the National Park Service. The prize aims to enhance awareness and appreciation of historic buildings and landscapes across the United States while contributing to the Library of Congress's collection of measured drawings.
“It’s an interest I’ve had in the back of my mind,” Lozanovski said about preservation work. “I’m all about new, cool designs, but there’s something nice about documenting something, even if it’s not threatened.”
Despite having no prior experience in preservation work, Lozanovski decided to enter the competition and secured second place, earning $5,000. He was unique among this year’s winners as he completed his project alone, unlike the first-place team from Ball State University which consisted of ten students.
“The process for a HABS submission requires that the student painstakingly measure and draw the building—plans, sections, elevations, details—so it is an incredible accomplishment for Thomas since he was a one-person team,” said Michelangelo Sabatino, Professor of Architecture and Lozanovski’s mentor for the competition.
Participants in the Peterson Prize must select a building not previously recorded through measured drawings or make significant contributions to understanding its importance. Five sets of drawings were selected as winners this year.
Lozanovski chose to document the Francis J. Benda and Sylvia Valha House in Riverside, Illinois—a two-story home listed on the National Register of Historic Places—with assistance from Sabatino. From May 2024 through July 2024, Lozanovski spent weekends measuring every detail of the house using original drawings from architect Winston Elting and tracking down specific details such as an aluminum handrail catalog from 1938.
“There were a lot of moments of extreme doubt during this project where I’d be leaving Riverside—it’s really late—and I'd call my mom or my fiancée and be like ‘I can’t do this. I’m done. It’s just too much,’” Lozanovski recalled. “To have all those doubts but then to get it done and get second place in a national competition—I couldn't believe it.”