How, then, should we approach preservation of such a pervasive vernacular building type that some might liken to a pox on the landscape, a symbol of our dependence on fossil fuels, places actually designed to prevent us from spending time there? However tempting it may be to equate our modern treatment of these spaces with their historic counterparts, presentism will leave us with smudged windshields and empty tanks when it comes to old service stations.

Although many of the original structures are gone, these institutions played an integral role in developing and sustaining resilient communities and represent the cultural heritage of the Eastside.