2025 Annual Membership Meeting + Elections
TUESDAY, AUGUST 26, 2025 | 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM
LAGUNA GLORIA | 3809 W 35TH STREET, AUSTIN, TX 78703
This FREE event is exclusively for Preservation Austin members. Join today to support our work and celebrate with us!
RSVPs for this event have now closed. Please email Development Coordinator Jurnee Troublefield for last-minute RSVPs.
We’re excited to announce Preservation Austin’s 2025 Annual Meeting and Elections! This year we’re gathering at the lovely Laguna Gloria Villa and sculpture gardens. Our exclusive membership event features drinks and light bites against the backdrop of Clara Driscoll’s 1916 Italianate mansion and its surrounding grounds. Join us to connect with local preservationists and explore this picturesque oasis after hours, while toasting the incredible supporters who make our work possible.
Our reception begins at the Villa and terrace at 7pm. Remarks and the election of Preservation Austin’s 2025-2026 Board of Directors will take place at 8pm in Laguna Gloria’s outdoor amphitheater. Attendees are encouraged to dress for a warm summer evening and are welcome to bring a picnic blanket for the terraced seating.
Space at this event is limited! Each Preservation Austin membership receives two free tickets. Please reserve tickets through your Preservation Austin membership portal by 12pm on August 22.
Interested in becoming a new member? Click HERE to support Preservation Austin’s 2025 Membership Drive. Email Development Coordinator Jurnee Troublefield for questions about membership or your membership status.
Many thanks to our generous hosts at Laguna Gloria for sharing their historic space for this special membership event.
Event Support Provided By:
Incoming Directors
2025-2028 New Directors - 1st Term
NIKKI DAVAUGHN
As a native East Austinite, Nikki DaVaughn has had a lifelong love for this city. She has been performing and emceeing in Austin for 15 years and producing for 10. She is the Founder/Director and Producer of Fat Bottom Cabaret whose mission is to provide representation and visibility to POC artists all over Central Texas. Formerly the Constituent Services Director for the City of Austin District 1 office, Nikki is now the host of the daily news and culture podcast City Cast Austin.
FRANK FARKASH
Frank Farkash is the CEO and co-founder of Moontower, an award-winning residential design-build firm based in Austin, Texas. With a background in architecture, construction, and business development, Frank leads a multidisciplinary team of architects, designers, and builders focused on delivering high-craft, client-centered homes across Central Austin.
Under Frank’s leadership, Moontower has earned a reputation for thoughtful design, operational excellence, and creative problem-solving in both new construction and complex remodels. His work reflects a deep respect for Austin’s architectural heritage and a commitment to advancing sustainable, resilient design in the built environment.
Frank is an active member of the Austin design and construction community, contributing to industry leadership through the National Association of the Remodeling Industry (NARI), the American Institute of Architects (AIA), and other local professional networks. He brings to the Preservation Austin board a strong belief in the power of preservation to foster cultural continuity, neighborhood identity, and long-term stewardship of our city’s most meaningful places, especially our neighborhoods.
STEVE JORDAN
Steve Jordan is honored to serve on the board of Preservation Austin, building on his longstanding dedication to safeguarding the city’s architectural heritage. A proud Austin resident for over 25 years, Steve has been an active supporter of Preservation Austin and its mission to protect and celebrate the places that tell the story of our community.
With more than 17 years of experience in real estate, Steve brings a deep understanding of Austin’s historic neighborhoods and the unique challenges and opportunities they face. He is passionate about ensuring that growth in Austin goes hand in hand with respect for the city’s past, working to foster inclusive, vibrant neighborhoods that honor their roots.
Steve’s commitment to Preservation Austin is grounded in his belief that historic places are essential to building a sense of belonging and continuity for all Austinites. He is eager to collaborate with fellow board members, neighbors, and city leaders to advance the organization’s work and support thoughtful preservation initiatives for generations to come.
MALLORY LAUREL
Mallory Laurel is a native of the Rio Grande Valley but has called Austin home for the last seven years. Through professional roles at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, Illinois Humanities, and Latino Studies at the University of Texas at Austin, she has learned to transform a variety of both urban and rural environments into engaging learning spaces. Most recently, she was the Special Projects Coordinator in Heritage Tourism at the Texas Historical Commission. In this role, she oversaw the THC’s legacy business program, created initiatives to engage new audiences, like Historic Overnights, a partnership with short-term rental owners, and led visitor experience workshops for museum and tourism professionals across Texas. Her expertise is in interpretation, storytelling, and experience design. She holds a Bachelor’s from the University of Notre Dame and a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from The Ohio State University.
FRANCOIS LEVY
François Lévy holds a BA in Classics and Philosophy from St John’s College in Santa Fe, and two Masters degrees from The University of Texas at Austin, in Architecture and in Engineering. As an architect who has lived and worked in central East Austin for nearly three decades, he values the historic fabric of our urban built environment and the community bonds it represents. Licensed in Texas and New Mexico, his projects have attracted regional and national press, including Dwell, This Old House, Natural Home, and HGTV. He has taught digital design, BIM (building information modeling), and environmental controls courses at UT Austin, The University of Texas at San Antonio, and St. Edward’s University in Austin, Texas at both the undergraduate and graduate level. He is the author of BIM for Design Firms, BIM in Small-Scale Sustainable Design BIM, and a contributor to the American Institute of Architect’s The Architects Handbook of Professional Practice, 15th edition. His areas of interest include sustainable architecture, BIM, cooling through passive ventilation, and space architecture. He has presented widely at both architectural and aerospace conferences.
KEVIN SINKAR
Kevin Sinkar serves as a Senior Product Marketing Engineer at Emerson/NI, where he develops strategic content and technical communications that articulate the value of advanced test and measurement technologies. With a background in Aerospace Engineering and a teaching certification from The University of Texas at Austin, he brings over a decade of experience in engineering, education, and cross-functional collaboration.
A resident of Austin for more than 20 years, Kevin is committed to inclusive preservation practices that recognize and elevate historically underrepresented narratives. As an Indigenous community member, he is actively engaged in efforts to connect with local Native groups and scholars to help integrate Indigenous histories into Austin’s preservation landscape. Kevin is passionate about ensuring that the city’s cultural heritage reflects the full diversity of its past.
2025-2026 Board Slate
2025-2026 OFFICERS
Miriam Conner, President
Travis Smith, President-Elect
Elisha Perez, Vice President
Perry Lorenz, Vice President
Kelly Little, Secretary
Nora Keane, Treasurer
2025-2026 NEW DIRECTORS
Nikki DaVaughn
Frank Farkash
Steve Jordan
Mallory Laurel
Francois Levy
Kevin Sinkar
2025-2028 RENEWING DIRECTORS
Will Bridges
Roland Galang
Kelly Little
Murray Legge
Emily Reed
Travis Smith
2025-2026 EX OFFICIO
Charles Peveto, Austin History Center Association
Kelley Russell, Travis County Historical Commission
Juliana Felkner, The University of Texas at Austin School of Architecture
2025-2026 ADVISOR
Cyndee Lake