"Everything in here that looks like gold, is gold."

One of Florida’s treasures in the danger zone of rising sea levels is irreplaceable, an invaluable, 131-year-old National Historic Landmark.

It’s the former Hotel Ponce de Leon in St. Augustine, a creation of railroader Henry Flagler as one of the luxurious resorts of the time.

“Everything in here that looks like gold, is gold,” said Leslee Keys, director of the college’s historic preservation.

It’s her urgent and still-incomplete task to help determine strategies for protecting a massively constructed, unmovable building, now housing a residence hall, administrative offices and dining hall.

She has been immersing herself in know-how. In May, Keys co-chaired a conference of U.S. and international experts in St. Augustine: “Keeping History Above Water.”

Read more at the Orlando Sentinel