Historic Preservation Grant: Buncombe County

Salisbury, N.C.-The North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources today (7 May 2010) announced $92,000 in grant support to nine historic preservation projects in nine counties around the state. Projects range from work on nominations to the National Register of Historic Places, to a Wooden Window and Energy Efficiency Workshop, to preservation plans for the cities of Salisbury and New Bern.

“May is National Preservation Month,” said Cultural Resources Secretary Linda A. Carlisle, as she made the grant announcement in Salisbury, one of the communities receiving a grant. “This year’s theme is ‘Old is the New Green,’ and historic preservation grants help communities assure that their vital heritage is cared for and shared.”

Preservation Month in North Carolina is cosponsored by the state Historic Preservation Office, part of the Department of Cultural Resources www.ncculture.com, and the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

The Historic Preservation Office identifies and protects, and enhances historic properties and districts through tax incentives, architectural surveys, and information and technical assistance for public and private property owners.

“Since 1998, state and federal historic preservation tax incentives in North Carolina have generated more than $1 billion in private investment spent to preserve and restore the state’s historic properties,” said Peter Sandbeck, Deputy State Historic Preservation Officer. “We are extremely proud to report that in 2009, North Carolina ranked third in the nation in the number of projects utilizing the federal historic preservation tax credits.”

These federal Historic Preservation Fund grants are being awarded by the State Historic Preservation Office through the National Park Service’s Certified Local Government Program, a preservation partnership between local, state and national governments focused on promoting historic preservation at the grass roots level. The Historic Preservation Fund is a federal matching grant program administered jointly by the National Park Service, United States Department of the Interior, and the State Historic Preservation Office.

The State Historic Preservation Office is part of the Office of Archives and History within the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources, the state agency with the mission to enrich lives and communities and the vision to harness the state’s cultural resources to build North Carolina’s social, cultural and economic future. Information on Cultural Resources is available at www.ncculture.com.

Buncombe County

The Asheville-Buncombe Country Historic Resources Commission has been awarded a federal Historic Preservation Fund grant of $4,500 for the Downtown Asheville National Register Nomination. The funds, which will be matched with $3,200 from Asheville and Buncombe County, will allow the city to hire a consultant to prepare the nomination.

This project will update and expand the Downtown Asheville Historic District National Register nomination listed in the National Register in 1979. Since 1976, more than 80 historic buildings have been successfully rehabilitated and preserved within the boundaries of the existing Downtown Asheville National Register Historic District. A number of other buildings have also been razed for surface parking. The existing district encompasses approximately 85 acres with 257 properties that are a mix of governmental, civic, institutional, and commercial structures. The update project will document twelve contributing resources within the existing boundary, which were not identified on the original inventory. It will also increase the period of significance to 1961. The proposed boundary increase, placed on the state’s National Register Study List in 2009, is estimated to add ten acres with thirty-five structures clustered to the west and southwest of the existing district.

Listing in the National Register will enable property owners to become eligible to apply for state and federal historic preservation tax credits, which have provided the incentive for the expenditure of over $1 billion since 1998 on the rehabilitation of historic buildings and houses in older neighborhoods and commercial districts across North Carolina.

This federal Historic Preservation Fund grant was awarded by the State Historic Preservation Office through the National Park Service’s Certified Local Government Program, a preservation partnership between local, state and national governments focused on promoting historic preservation at the grass roots level. The Historic Preservation Fund is a federal matching grant program administered jointly by the National Park Service, United States Department of the Interior, and the State Historic Preservation Office.

Contact: Stacy Merten, Director

Asheville-Buncombe County Historic Resources Commission

828-259-5836; smerten@ashevillenc.gov
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The Historic Resources Commission of Asheville and Buncombe County (HRC), is a 14 member body, seven members are appointed by the City of Asheville and seven members are appointed by Buncombe County. The HRC was created in 1979 to evaluate historically significant neighborhoods, areas, and individual sites and to recommend their designation as a Local Historic District or Local Historic Property. It administers design review of new construction or rehabilitation within those areas. Asheville has four locally designated historic districts: Albemarle Park, Biltmore Village, St. Dunstan's and Montford as well as 45 local historic landmarks. Minor works may be approved by the staff, while major works require review by the Historic Resources Commissioners. The Commission also serves as an educational resource promoting the merits of historical preservation and providing technical assistance to property owners and residents in the entire region.

Chair: Diane Duermit, dianed@beverly-hanks.com
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