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Perryville battlefield endangered

March 14, 2008

Perryville Battlefield is one of the most endangered battlefields in the nation, a national Civil War preservation group says.

The Civil War Preservation Trust recently released its annual Most Endangered Battlefields report for 2008, and the 10 sites on the list include Perryville.

The battlefield was listed because a "developer is asking for the last agriculturally zoned land within Perryville city limits to be rezoned for highway commercial and high-density residential uses. Persistent cell tower proposals also threaten to mar the battlefield's viewshed," the report said.

The report commended Boyle County's 2007 Comprehensive Plan, which "stresses the importance of historic preservation at the battlefield and elsewhere, but also recognizes that agricultural land is being lost to residential development along the U.S. 150 corridor."

Chris Kolakowski, executive director of the Perryville Enhancement Project, said Perryville is one of the best-preserved battlefields in the country, and a nationally-significant site, so any potential threats to the integrity of the battlefield and its area are magnified. Several other near-pristine battlefields like Antietam are also on the list.

"The fact that Perryville is listed shows that what goes on here affects not just people in Boyle County or Kentucky but people across the United States. We appreciate CWPT's listing and attention to this area," Kolakowski said.

"CWPT has assisted in preserving over 385 of the 669 acres saved at Perryville; they have played a major role in keeping this battlefield pristine, and we look forward to working with them in the future."

The Perryville Battlefield Preservation Association is a membership organization charged with preservation and interpretation of the battlefield and town. It oversees the Perryville Enhancement Project in conjunction with the state, Boyle County, and city of Perryville.

Since 1991, the project has preserved and interpreted more than 500 acres of critical battlefield land along with several original structures in the city of Perryville.

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