Pennsylvania Historic Preservation

Blog of the Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office

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February 27, 2023
by Shelby Weaver Splain
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PA SHPO Special Announcement! We’re Hiring a Preservation Incentives Division Manager

Are you interested in joining a proactive and dedicated team of preservationists, historians, and archaeologists?  The Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office (PA SHPO) is seeking a manager to lead the Preservation Incentives Division and help advance PA SHPO priorities. This … Continue reading

November 30, 2022
by smassey
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Learning about Historic Tax Credits with Homestead’s Bishop Boyle High

The Bishop Boyle High School is another preservation success story for Homestead, a small Pennsylvania borough on the south side of the Monongahela River between Pittsburgh and Braddock. Following the Homestead Masonic Hall a few years ago, Bishop Boyle High … Continue reading

August 3, 2022
by smassey
2 Comments

Pennsylvania’s Historic Preservation Tax Credit At Work: SFY2021-2022 Update

The Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (PA DCED) recently announced that it has awarded $5 million in Pennsylvania Historic Preservation Tax Credits (PA HPTC) to 25 projects across the commonwealth through the FY 2021-2022 PA HPTC Allocation. The … Continue reading

May 18, 2022
by Shelby Weaver Splain
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Celebrating the Wilkinsburg Train Station Restoration Project

This week our Preservation Month celebration of the 2021 Community Initiative Award winners takes us west to Allegheny County – specifically, the Borough of Wilkinsburg. The Wilkinsburg Train Station Restoration Project, led by the Wilkinsburg Community Development Corporation (WCDC), received … Continue reading

April 6, 2022
by smassey
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The New Century Guild in the 21st Century

The New Century Guild building, located at 1307 Locust Street in Philadelphia, PA, is an Italianate brick rowhouse constructed in 1851 as a private residence. It remained a private residence until 1906, when the New Century Guild, one of the … Continue reading

January 5, 2022
by smassey
2 Comments

Rehabilitating Pittsburgh’s “First” Skyscraper with Historic Tax Credits

The Arrott Building, located at 401 Wood Street in Pittsburgh, PA, was designed by prominent Pittsburgh architect, Frederick J. Osterling in 1902 and is one of Pittsburgh’s first skyscrapers.

Large brick building next to water surrounded by trees.

September 1, 2021
by smassey
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The Gamble on this Mill Paid Off

The Gamble Mill at 160 Dunlap Street in Bellefonte, Centre County, PA was listed in the National Register of Historic Places on August 1, 1975, as one of the only remaining grain mills in the county and one with surviving … Continue reading

Artists rendering of rehabilitated Ohringer Building

July 7, 2021
by smassey
1 Comment

Historic Tax Credits + Artists + Braddock = Preservation Success

There are great examples throughout Pennsylvania – and the country – of historic buildings being repurposed to support, house, and celebrate local and regional arts communities. Two specifically come to mind in Pennsylvania, the GoggleWorks in Reading, Berks County and … Continue reading

March 24, 2021
by smassey
1 Comment

Rehabilitating Wilkes-Barre’s Memorial Presbyterian Church

Rehabilitating a religious property, like a church, using historic tax credits can be very challenging because it is often difficult to match the building’s desired new use with the historic floor plan and character-defining spaces. Design professionals and building owners … Continue reading

March 17, 2021
by Shelby Weaver Splain
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Preservation’s March Madness

“March Madness” in the historic preservation world isn’t quite the same as the highly competitive, single-elimination college basketball tournaments that happen each March. I’ve coopted the phrase to describe National Historic Preservation Advocacy Week and the days leading up to … Continue reading