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Wilkes-Barre is going to lose another historical and architectural gem if action isn&#8217;t taken in the very near future.However, there is a glimmer of hope. It is a small group of people who care about saving the Irem Temple in downtown Wilkes-Barre. I&#8217;d like to tip my hat to these caring residents and give them kudos for wanting to save such an exquisite building.The Irem Temple is an architectural splendor to observe and it needs to be saved! Years of deterioration are starting to take its toll on the structure and potentially irreversible damage will start occurring if the action isn&#8217;t take soon. If the Irem meets the same fate as the Hotel Sterling Hotel did, only a few blocks away, I will be convinced that Wilkes-Barre will truly be known as the city of parking lots, because that is what is most likely going to be made of the space the Irem Temple now occupies.A local historian showed me a map of the city from the early 1900s and one from only a few years ago; it was incredibly sad to see what the city has lost to ignorance of the importance of preservation and more importantly revitalization. If we keep tearing down buildings and not replacing them, then what is going to become of our city in the next 100 years? (Keep in mind how long ago the Hotel Sterling was torn down and, to date, this prime piece of land is still vacant.)For anyone who hasn&#8217;t seen photos of the inside of this building, I can assure you that you won&#8217;t find the ornate designs and architecture within this building anywhere else in the city. It truly has a character all its own. There isn&#8217;t another building within miles of this valley that has what the Irem Temple has to offer.As a 31-year-old with a bachelor&#8217;s degree in history, I can appreciate the historical value in something like the Irem Temple and I am also very sentimental, which I attribute to being raised to appreciate what I have and what can be lost. Therefore, I can appreciate the value of this building even more because I was among one of the last groups of people to walk inside this building. A local dance company I attended would have its annual shows in this magnificent building and I had the opportunity, from a very young age, to grace the enormous stage and look out into the beautiful auditorium. I remember looking up at the ornate designs &#8211; most especially, the stained glass dome in the auditorium &#8211; and simply being amazed at it. It truly is a work of art.I ask the residents of this wonderful city (young and old) to please support the endeavors of the group that has taken interest in this monumental task and take the time to learn about the background behind the Irem Temple.Personally, I ask for the city of Wilkes-Barre and its leaders, the chamber of commerce and the group interested in preserving the beauty of a building to please work together and seek out all possible avenues to pay for this project without it falling on the backs of the taxpayers.Holly EvanoskiWilkes-Barre

Letter to the Editor: Rescue Wilkes-Barre’s Irem Temple from the brink