Blog of the Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office

Category: Grant Programs (Page 11 of 11)

Spotlight Series: National Alliance of Preservation Commissions

The Spotlight Series is an occassional series that highlights interesting people, places, programs, and partner organizations working on historic preservation issues.

PrintWhen it comes to protecting historic places and maintaining the character of our neighborhoods, villages, and landscapes, we all know that the real action is at the local level.  Cities like Charleston and New Orleans paved the way for municipal historic preservation programs in the 1920s and 30s when they adopted ordinances designating portions of those cities as historic districts and enacting design review programs for managing changes to buildings in those districts.  Since then, thousands of communities across the country, including hundreds in Pennsylvania, have adopted preservation ordinances of their own.  A major resource for these communities is the National Alliance of Preservation Commissions, the only national –level organization dedicated to serving the needs of local government preservation boards and commissions through education, advocacy, and training. Continue reading

Local Landmarks For Sale: National Guard Armories

There is an armory in almost every county in Pennsylvania.  Some counties have two or three.  They are one of the most historically significant and, in most cases, architecturally distinctive buildings in the communities lucky enough to host one.  The National Guard in Pennsylvania has a long history of military and civic service and the armories are the physical expression of that history.  The Department of General Services is offering eleven of these historic armories for sale.  This is the perfect opportunity to adaptively reuse these buildings and retain an important landmark in your community. Continue reading

Keystone Fund Projects Receive Awards

Keystone Fund LogoSince its creation in 1993, the Keystone Recreation, Park & Conservation Fund has supported thousands of projects in countless Pennsylvania communities, including more than 500 historic preservation projects.  So, on March 18, 2013, on the occasion of the Fund’s 20th Anniversary, the Keystone Partners took a moment to pause and reflect on the Keystone Fund’s impact and honor some of its success stories.  Gathered under the dome of the Pennsylvania State Capitol Building representatives from several nonprofit fund partners, current and former state legislators, and agency directors presented awards to projects from across the Commonwealth that exemplify the intent and impact of the Keystone Fund.  Continue reading

You Speak and We Listen: Design Assistance for Pennsylvania’s Communities

Or at least we try to. In 2008, BHP conducted a questionnaire for Certified Local Governments (CLGs). Among many other suggestions, the most frequent request we received was to help with design issues. The Certified Local Government (CLG) program is one of the federal historic preservation programs administered by the BHP. Essentially, local governments who agree to operate their historic preservation programs according to Pennsylvania’s CLG guidelines can be certified through our office and the National Park Service. CLG certification, among other benefits, provides access to a dedicated source of funding for non-construction preservation projects from BHP.
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A Refocus on Preservation in Pittsburgh

Anne E. Nelson

Historic preservation in Pittsburgh has had a productive past few months.  Activity in downtown Pittsburgh is blossoming due to the rehabilitation and adaptive reuse of several historic buildings by developers using historic preservation tax incentives.  The boundaries of a locally designated historic district were recommended for expansion by the City of Pittsburgh’s (City) Historic Review and Planning Commissions to the City Council.  The City issued a Request For Proposal (RFP) to undertake an economic study of the financial and social impacts of preservation.  In addition, the Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission (PHMC) is recommending to the National Park Service for listing on the National Register of Historic Places a new historic district, as well as boundary expansions and updated inventories for four existing National Register districts in downtown Pittsburgh.

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