Landmark Preservation Consulting

MEET THE PARTNERS

GREG JACOBS

Prior to earning a degree in Historic Preservation from Savannah College of Art and Design in 1997, Greg Jacobs began his preservation career by starting Renaissance Restorations, LLC, a company focused on the rehabilitation of condemned buildings in Savannah’s various historic districts. Following graduation, he went on to rehabilitate dozens of historic commercial and residential structures. His efforts were later broadened to pioneer the redevelopment of an entire neighborhood in Savannah, now commonly referred to as the Starland District.

In 2008, Greg accepted a position as Building’s Curator for Telfair Museums, Inc. in Savannah. His curatorship included complete conservation and maintenance oversight of the Telfair Academy (the South’s oldest public art museum), the Owens-Thomas House Museum (one of the Country’s finest examples of English Regency architecture), and the state-of- the-art Jepson Center for the Arts (a Moshe Safdie designed modern art museum). Greg’s responsibilities later expanded when he accepted the position of Deputy Director of Operations, which in addition to his duties as Building’s Curator, included development of operating budgets, long-range planning, and general site operations. During his tenure at Telfair, Greg honed his skills by developing a thorough understanding of the curatorial and museum management facets of historic preservation.

In 2011, Greg seized an opportunity to work as a lead project manager for Tidewater Preservation. Tidewater Preservation built a nearly thirty-year reputation for museum-quality conservation and restoration services around the country. Greg’s responsibilities within the organization included preservation planning, condition assessments, project estimating, proposal writing, and project management for all projects. During this time, Greg was exposed to a wide variety of preservation projects including many of significant national importance and expanded his knowledge of hands-on means and methods to include most historic preservation trades.

Following the dissolvement of Tidewater Preservation in 2015, Greg co-founded Landmark Preservation LLC along with John Ecker. As Landmark’s managing partner, Greg is responsible for all project estimating, proposals, project management, and general business management. Greg also works hands-on when the project schedule warrants it, giving him the opportunity to exhibit his preservation craftsmanship. Within a brief period of time, Landmark has developed an outstanding reputation for preservation excellence, and continues to provide craftsmanship that is unparalleled in the field.

Throughout the course of Greg’s career, he has restored and conserved countless historic structures. Greg performs all work according to the guidelines established by the Department of the Interior’s Standards for Historic Preservation, and subscribes to the Code of Ethics of the American Institute for the Conservation of Historic Works.

Greg has lived and worked in historic Savannah for almost thirty years. He and his wife, Beth, are proud to make their home here with their three children. 

ELLIE ISAACS

As a 2014 graduate of the Savannah College of Art and Design, Ellie received a degree in Historic Preservation, with minors in Architectural History and Interior Design. During her senior year, she participated in a Directed Collaboration Studio with the National Trust for Historic Preservation: Green Lab, which ultimately led to her being the only historic preservation undergraduate student presenting at the National Trust for Historic Preservation PastForward conference held in Savannah. 

Upon graduation, Ellie lived and worked in Hot Springs, Arkansas as a historic preservationist and designer for a local architecture firm. Her work included façade rehabilitations, preservation tax credit projects, and research. Ellie’s most notable project was The Waters Hotel located in the 1913 Thompson Building, designed by George Mann. The boutique hotel contains 62 rooms, and an upscale tapas style restaurant. Ellie was a co-interior designer and managed the seven million dollar project’s state and federal preservation tax credit application process, interior’s budget, ordering schedule, and interior staging. The Waters won the 2017 Preserve Arkansas Preservation Award for Excellence in Preservation through Rehabilitation—Commercial. While in Hot Springs, Ellie was the youngest Commissioner on the Hot Springs Historic District Commission advocating for the Main Street approach to the Central Avenue Historic District, educating the public on preservation tax credits and proper treatment methods. In 2015, she took on Capitol Hill as she met with Arkansas state senators and congressmen to advocate for the vitality of State and Federal Historic Preservation Tax Credits.

Returning to Savannah in 2017, Ellie joined a local architecture firm as an on staff historic preservation specialist, specializing in research, preservation tax credit applications, conditions assessments, and historic resource surveys. Her most notable reports include a historic structure report for the Mother Trinity CME Church located in Augusta, collaboration on the Savannah City Hall Condition Assessment and Restoration Plan, and the Savannah Powder Magazine Conditions Assessment. Ellie completed historic resource surveys for the City of Richmond Hill, as well as Phases 3 and 4 of the county-wide survey of McIntosh County.

Joining the Landmark Preservation LLC team in 2020, Ellie quickly took over project management of conditions assessments and grew the consulting arm of the company to be able to officially form Landmark Preservation Consulting in 2022. Ellie meets the Professional Qualifications for Architectural History by the Secretary of the Interior. She was the SCAD Alumni mentor for her program, recently renamed to Preservation Design, for the academic year of 2023. She also previously sat on Historic Savannah Foundation’s Architectural Review Committee for the Historic Preservation Commission for almost three years. Ellie most recently sat as Chair of the Savannah Historic District Board of Review and was a board member for over five years, resigning in January 2024. 

Upon returning to Savannah, Ellie has lived and worked in historic Savannah for over five years. She is proud to make her home here with her four dogs. Ellie is a passionate advocate, particularly related to historic resources tied to African American history both in Savannah and Atlanta. “I regularly tell clients that I don’t take on projects for my own personal recognition or notoriety. I do it for them; to simply be the vessel that assists them to advocate and preserve their neighborhood, their building, their history, their story.”