A few of my PA SHPO colleagues and I traveled to Washington, D.C. in March to join State Historic Preservation Offices and other preservationists from around the country at National Historic Preservation Advocacy Week.
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Category: National Historic Preservation Act (Page 3 of 6)
One of the many roles for all State Historic Preservation Offices (SHPOs), including Pennsylvania’s, outlined in the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) is to advise, assist, and consult on the review of federally assisted projects that have the potential to affect historic properties. This is known as the Section 106 Review Process. Continue reading
Archaeology for the People and by the… PennDOT?
Yep, you’re reading that right: the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) does archaeology! Continue reading
July 2nd is the day we start doing things a little bit differently here at the PA SHPO: online data entry and required project review forms!
Here is what we first announced in our April 4, 2018 blog:
Electronic, aka online, data entry is one of the ways in which we are changing how we do business in order to prepare for PA-SHARE, our new enterprise-wide, spatially enabled, cultural resource information system that is expected to be live by December 2019.
As part of our efforts to “model the work” in advance of PA-SHARE, effective July 2, 2018, submitters will be required to electronically enter resources into CRGIS for all Above Ground Environmental Review submissions that have the potential to affect ten (10) or more newly identified historic resources. A few things to note with this:
- Currently, submitters with large scale surveys (ten or more historic resources) as part of their projects are strongly encouraged to use the online data entry. After July 2, this will be required and paper forms and reports will not be accepted.
- Submitters sending in projects with fewer than ten (10) newly identified historic resources are strongly encouraged to use the CRGIS online data entry but will not be required to do so.
- This process cannot be used for additional information requests or previously identified resources.
Also, the Interim Guidelines for Above Ground Environmental Review are now published and available for you to use!
As we move toward PA-SHARE, these interim guidelines are intended to supplement Chapter 6. Compliance Investigations and Chapter 7. Report Standards of the Guidelines for Architectural Investigations in Pennsylvania, 2014. They should also be used in conjunction with any other relevant guidelines, including but not limited to Survey Guidelines for Pipeline Projects Above Ground Resources, June 2013 and Guidelines for Projects with Potential Visual Effects, September 2014.
The interim guidelines focus specifically on Project Initiation, Identification, and Evaluation efforts and associated reporting procedures, including a sample Identification report for review. In addition as part of these efforts, the Project Review Form has been updated so please replace those outdated versions!
The Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office (PA SHPO) is happy to announce the opening of a new Preservation Services ITQ contract for future consulting opportunities with the PA SHPO. We are inviting consultants to pre-qualify and be notified of upcoming bids for the exciting work we do.
Continue readingAt the beginning of May, I promised we’d provide a recap of the #31for31 social media campaign to celebrate Preservation Month across Pennsylvania. If you missed a post on our Facebook page or in our Twitter feed, no worries! You can see it, and the rest of the month’s content, right here. Don’t miss the big announcement covered in the May 31st post! Continue reading
Add this to your summer reading list! #preservationhappenshere – PA’s Statewide Preservation Plan – is ready for you
Picture yourself – lounging poolside, lakeside, or on the beach – with your tablet or smart phone (or even good old-fashioned paper) enjoying the hottest summer publication that hasn’t yet made the New York Times bestseller list: #preservationhappenshere, Pennsylvania’s next statewide historic preservation plan. Continue reading
PA SHPO goes to Washington! Advocacy Week 2018
Every year in March, State Historic Preservation offices and preservation advocates from across the country travel to Washington, D.C. for National Historic Preservation Advocacy Week. The Pennsylvania delegation was there to be a part of it.
What is Advocacy Week?
Advocacy Week, as you may recall from this post and this post, is one of big preservation events of the year. Preservation Action and the National Conference of State Historic Preservation Officers (NCSHPO) organize Advocacy Week each year, bringing over 250 preservationists to Washington, DC to promote sound federal preservation policy and programs. The first day of Advocacy Week typically includes in-depth training, policy briefings, and forums from an array of preservation and policy professionals. The second day is when things really start to get fun!
Preservation Advocacy Week logo.
Pennsylvania’s Delegation
This year’s PA SHPO team included me, Andrea MacDonald, and Cory Kegerise. Executive Director Mindy Crawford and Board member Sandy Rosenberg joined us from Preservation PA. Brenda Barrett, a long-time Advocacy Week attendee and editor of the Living Landscape Observer, and Cindy Hamilton, representing the Historic Tax Credit Coalition, also joined the group.
PA’s delegation in March 2018. From left: Brenda Barrett, Andrea MacDonald, Cindy Hamilton, Mindy Crawford, Sandy Rosenberg, me, and Cory Kegerise.
Walking Capitol Hill
The second day of Advocacy Week is devoted to visits with Pennsylvania’s Representatives and Senators. We weren’t quite sure how this year would go given the number of Congressman retiring this year and the uncertainly of the new congressional district map. Divided into three teams, we met with staff from 13 offices (12 Representatives and 1 Senator) and walked miles (not really, but it felt like it!) in the tunnels between the Cannon, Longworth, and Rayburn House Office Buildings and across the Hill to the Russell Senate Office Building.
I am happy to report that all of our visits were a huge success! We had the chance to meet with new staff and old friends to talk about historic preservation and why it matters.
So what happens at these meetings?
The meetings are typically 15 minutes long and can happen anywhere – in a Congressman’s office or the hallway. Our goal is always to create more awareness and, if we’re lucky, a new relationship. We provide a folder of information for the meeting, which includes the “Your Guide to the PA State Historic Preservation Office,” information sheets on preservation programs and issues, and our contact information. This year, we were also able to give the people we met with an on-the-spot thank you card for taking the time to meet with us.
Videos steal the show
One of the ways that we have found to communicate the importance of preservation, especially to the average Joe, is through videos. These steal the show. We can talk about the need to support historic preservation all day long, but these video testimonials bring preservation to life.
PHMC’s video and social media wizard, Sean Adkins, produced three new videos for us this year! You might remember that last year our videos focused on the benefit and necessity of the historic tax credit. In this year’s videos, we wanted to show the broad range of preservation activities that the Historic Preservation Fund supports. Take a look!
- City of Lancaster: This video showcases the preservation work happening in Lancaster right now. The city is a CLG (certified local government), is home to some great historic tax credit and grant projects, and has a local and National Register historic districts. Former PA SHPO-er Jeremy Young even makes an appearance!
- Spangler Farm: This testimonial follows the Noll family as they take you on a tour of their farm, the former Spangler Farm, in Union County. Listing in the National Register is a tremendous source of pride for them, and their efforts will help preserve this early – and relatively intact – farmstead. They were so happy they were listed last year that they held a party!
- Brandywine Battlefield: Brandywine Battlefield benefits from federal grants, principally from the American Battlefield Protection Program, an involved Task Force, and support from county planning offices and the public.
The George Christian and Anna Catherine Spangler Farm in Union County was listed in August 2016.
You can check out the videos through the above links or visit PHMC’s YouTube channel.
Do we make a difference?
Yes. I think our time in Washington networking with other SHPOs and meeting with our federal representatives do make a difference. Congressional staffers hear from people in their districts regularly and it’s important for them to consider us a resource for them and their constituents when preservation issues arise.
The Certified Local Government (CLG) Program has been part of the national preservation toolbox since the early 1980s. Like other programs established by the National Historic Preservation Act, the CLG program is administered by each State Historic Preservation Office based on state-specific guidelines approved by the National Park Service. Pennsylvania’s CLG guidelines procedures were last updated in 2009, but haven’t changed substantially since the program started almost 30 years ago. That’s all about to change! The PA SHPO has recently released a draft of proposed changes to the CLG program and will be accepting comments from the public until December 4, 2017. Continue reading
Guidance for the Treatment of Historic Bridges
Wherever you travel in Pennsylvania, you are likely to cross a historic bridge. These bridges are an important part of the cultural landscape and a link to Pennsylvania’s transportation and engineering history. Eventually these bridges need some level of work to continue providing a safe passage, but what is the best way to execute this work without diminishing the bridges’ historic character? By consulting and applying the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties (the Standards) for guidance.
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