APPENDIX B –
HISTORIC PRESERVATION AT THE STATE AND LOCAL LEVEL
Establishing a local Historic District requires an
assessment of the present status of the community’s historic resources,
knowledge of past historic preservation efforts, and a list of goals and
objectives. Taking such an assessment enables
the designating community to take advantage of historic preservation incentives
available at the national, state, and local governmental levels, such as
grants, income tax credits for historic rehabilitation, low-interest loans, and
local tax abatements. A requirement of
establishing a local district, provided it was created pursuant to Act 167, the
Historic District Act, is the establishment of a Historic Architectural Review
Board (HARB). The HARB reviews all
proposed erection, reconstruction, alteration, restoration, or demolition of
buildings within the district before the issuance of any municipal permits
pursuant to these actions. HARB reviews
and recommendations must be consistent with the design guidelines established
at the enactment of the Historic District.
The Borough Council and Township Supervisors have the right to
incorporate any of the HARB’s recommendations into the permit requirements, but
they may also override those recommendations.
Municipalities whose districts are not created under Act 167 are not
required to have a HARB, but instead may appoint a Historic District Commission
or Committee.
The Region contains one potential Historic District, the Waynesboro
District, and the Monterey Historic District.
Two
Act 247 – The Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code (MPC)
Acts 67 and 68 of 2001 amended the MPC, strengthening the
ability of local governments to protect historic resources through their
Comprehensive Plans, Zoning Ordinances and Subdivision and Land Development
Ordinances. The following passages and
paraphrases from the MPC are the most critical sections regarding this power.
·
§603(C)(7) – Zoning
ordinances may promote and preserve prime agricultural land, environmentally
sensitive areas, and areas of historic significance.
·
§603(G)(2) - Zoning
ordinances are required to protect natural and historic resources.
·
§702(1)(ii) – The governing
body of each municipality may enact, amend and repeal provisions of a zoning
ordinance in order to fix
standards and conditions for traditional neighborhood development. In the case
of either an outgrowth or extension of existing development or urban infill, a
traditional neighborhood development designation may be either in the form of
an overlay zone, or as an outright designation, whichever the municipality
decides. Outgrowths or extensions of existing development may include
development of a contiguous municipality.
·
§1106(a)(6) – Multi‑municipal
Comprehensive Plans shall consider the conservation and enhancement of natural,
scenic, historic, and aesthetic resources in their municipalities.
A Historic Overlay Zoning District, unlike the protection
offered through the establishment of an Act 167 Historic District (discussed
below), can include individual sites as well as clusters, as long as the
resources are documented and identified on a historic resources map. A historic overlay district could require new
buildings to be similar in type and scale to those already existing. Setbacks should be consistent with the common
building setback. Requirements to
replicate the existing building line, building height, and bulk could help to
preserve the character of the neighborhood.
Act 167 ‑ The Historic District Act (1961)
Municipalities may create historic districts within their
borders to protect the historic character through regulation of the erection,
reconstruction, alteration, restoration, demolition, or razing of buildings in
the district. The Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission must certify
districts, including a determination of
eligibility for the National Register of Historic Places. In this way, historic districts established
pursuant to Act 167 have the same protection from federal projects as do
National Register properties. Act 167
also requires appointment of a HARB.
Historical and Museum Commission Act
1945
Act No. 446, approved June 6, 1945, created the
Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC) by consolidating the
functions of the Pennsylvania Historical Commission, The State Museum, and the
State Archives. The PHMC is an
independent administrative board, consisting of 14 members: 9 citizens of the
Commonwealth appointed by the Governor, the Secretary of Education (ex
officio), 2 members of the Senate, and 2 members of the House of
Representatives. The Executive Director
is appointed by the Commission and is an ex officio member of three groups: the
Environmental Quality Board, County Records Committee, and the Local Government
Records Committee.
The PHMC is the official agency for the conservation of
The PHMC is funded partially through an annual legislative
appropriation, federal grants, and private donations. Officially recognized local historical
organizations may benefit financially through the Commission’s eligibility to
receive matching funds from various federal programs. The PHMC is active in many phases of historic
preservation. The PHMC also conducts a
landmark identification program, presenting identification plaques to property
owners for attachment on structures included in the Pennsylvania Inventory of
Historical Places. The landmark
identification program also includes the placement of roadside historical signs
at various sites and locations having statewide and national historic
significance. Today there are nearly
1,900 such markers across the state.
The Office of Historic Preservation is an arm of the PHMC
responsible for assisting the public and private sectors in implementing the
Commonwealth’s policy to “protect and enhance our irreplaceable resources.” To this end, the Office has implemented a
five-point program:
·
Registering historically and
architecturally significant sites and structures on the National Register of
Historic Places and on the Pennsylvania Inventory of Historic Places;
·
Advising and guiding
individuals and organizations regarding historic preservation and its funding;
·
Reviewing applications for
federal preservation grants;
·
Working for legislation at
the state level to provide effective tools for historic preservation; and
·
Working with other
governmental agencies to review the impact of projects, such as highways, on
the Commonwealth’s historic resources.
The Bureau is an agency of the PHMC. The Executive Director of the Bureau is designated
as the State Historic Preservation Officer (SHPO).
The Bureau provides technical assistance for the
preservation, rehabilitation, and restoration of historic buildings. The Bureau reviews architectural plans and
specifications and provides comments on historic building projects for state
and federal compliance. They also assist in code-related issues and
accessibility programs in the form of letters of support for variances for historic
buildings. To inform the public, public
agencies, local governments, and other stewards of historic properties, the
Bureau assists in the development and distribution of materials on applying the
Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation when repairing
historic buildings.
The Bureau also administers the Federal Rehabilitation
Investment Tax Credit (RITC) program in partnership with the National Park
Service. The tax credit program is one of the most successful programs
for encouraging private investment in the rehabilitation of historic properties. Since the establishment of the PHMC in 1976,
The Bureau also administers the State’s Historic
Preservation Program as authorized by the Pennsylvania History Code and
National Historic Preservation Act of 1966.
The program is guided by advisory boards as well as the
Pennsylvania Historic Preservation Plan.
The Pennsylvania
General Assembly is considering legislation to establish a Historic Homesites
Grant Program. Once established, this legislation will provide funds to the
Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission to support rehabilitation grants
(up to $6,000) to individuals owning and residing in a historic residential
building, as well as to individuals intending to purchase and reside in a
historic residential building. Possible
conditions for eligibility include the following:
·
The building must serve as
the owner's principal residence,
·
The building must be listed
in the National Register of Historic Places or be determined to be a
contributing building in a listed National Register Historic District,
·
The building must be located
in an Act 167 historic district or be designated as a historic property under
the local ordinance or city code in
·
All rehabilitation work must
conform to the U.S. Secretary of Interior's Standards
for the Treatment of Historic Properties.
National Efforts and Legislation for Historic Preservation
Federal programs encouraging historic preservation
include:
·
the National Register of
Historic Places,
·
Historic Preservation Tax
Credits on federal income tax for qualifying rehabilitation and adaptive reuse
of historic buildings used for income‑producing purposes,
·
Section 106 Review of
federally funded or assisted projects that impact historic resources, and
·
the Certified Local Government
Program, which facilitates historic preservation at the local level.
The earliest Federal preservation statute was the
Antiquities Act of 1906, which authorized the President to set aside historic
landmarks, structures, and objects located on lands controlled by the
The Historic Sites Act of 1935 was the second major piece
of Federal historic preservation legislation.
This act declared it national policy to preserve for public use historic
sites, buildings, and objects of national significance and directed the
Secretary of the Interior to conduct various programs with respect to historic
preservation.
In 1964, The United States Conference of Mayors undertook
a study of historic preservation in the
National Historic Preservation Act of
1966 (NHPA)
The National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 and its
subsequent amendments established a legal basis for the protection and
preservation of historic and cultural resources. Historic resources are defined
as "any prehistoric or historic
district, site, building, structures or object included in, or eligible for
inclusion in the National Register; the term includes artifacts, records, and
remains which are related to such a district, site, building, structure or
object".
The Act promoted the
use of historic properties to meet the contemporary needs of society. It directed the Federal Government, in
cooperation with State and local governments, Native Americans, and the public,
to take a leadership role in preservation.
First, the Act authorized the Secretary of the Interior to expand and
maintain the National Register of Historic Places. This is an inventory of districts, sites,
buildings, structures, and objects significant on a national, State, or local
level in American history, architecture, archeology, engineering, and
culture. Once a property is eligible to
be placed on the list, the property, site, or object can be qualified for
Federal grants, loans, and tax incentives.
Second, the NHPA encourages State and local preservation programs. States may prepare and submit programs for
historic preservation to the Secretary of the Interior for approval. Approval can be granted if they:
·
designate a State Historic
Preservation Officer (SHPO) to administer the State preservation program,
·
establish a State historic
preservation review board, and
·
provide for adequate public
participation in the State program.
Since 1966, the Congress has strengthened national
preservation policy through other statutes, including the National Environmental
Policy Act, several transportation acts, and statutes directed toward the
protection and preservation of archeological resources. These laws all require Federal agencies to
consider historic resources in their decision making and overlap with provisions
of NHPA.
Section 106 Review
Section 106 of the NHPA requires Federal agencies to
consider the effects of their actions on historic properties and provide the
Council an opportunity to comment on Federal projects prior to
implementation. Section 106 review
encourages, but does not mandate, preservation.
To successfully complete Section 106 review, Federal
agencies must:
·
determine if Section 106 of
NHPA applies to a given project and, if so, initiate the review,
·
gather information to
determine which properties in the project area are listed on or are eligible
for the National Register of Historic Places,
·
determine how those historic
properties might be affected by the project in question,
·
explore alternatives to
avoid or reduce any negative effect upon those historic properties, and
·
reach agreement with the
SHPO on specific measures to mitigate any adverse effects.
The Executive Branch has also expressed support for
preservation through several Executive Orders.
Examples include Executive Order No. 11593 of 1971, which instituted
procedures for Federal agencies to follow in their property management
activities. Executive Order No. 13006
encourages the location of Federal offices and facilities in historic districts
and properties within the inner cities.
Executive Order No. 13006 also directs Federal agencies to use and
rehabilitate properties in such areas wherever feasible and reaffirms the
commitment to Federal leadership in the preservation of historic properties set
forth in NHPA. Executive Order, No.
13007, signed in 1996, expressed support for the protection of Native American
sacred sites.
Federal Tax Incentives for Historic
Buildings
According to the Tax Reform Act of 1986, a property owner
is eligible for a 20% tax credit, along with a 27.5 to 31.5% straight-line
depreciation for the substantial rehabilitation of historic buildings for
commercial, industrial and rental residential purposes (not owner-occupied
buildings). In addition, the Act allows
a 10% tax credit for the substantial rehabilitation of nonresidential buildings
built before 1936. The 10% tax credit is
not available for rehabilitations of certified structures.
Two Federal Tax Incentive Programs currently apply to
preservation activities in
Rehabilitation investment tax credits are the most widely
used incentive program. Certain expenses incurred in connection with the
rehabilitation of an old building are eligible for a tax credit. Rehabilitation
investment tax credits are available to owners and certain long-term leases of
income-producing properties that are listed on the National Register of
Historic Places. There are two rates: 20% for historic buildings and 10% for
non-residential, non-historic buildings built before 1936.
The charitable contribution deduction is taken in the form
of a conservation easement and enables the owner of a "certified historic
structure" to receive a one-time tax deduction. A conservation easement
usually involves the preservation of a building's facade by restricting the
right to alter its appearance.
The Federal Tax Incentive Programs are coordinated through
the State Historic Preservation Office, Bureau for Historic Preservation,
Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission in conjunction with the National
Park Service. Federal Historic Preservation Certification. Applications are
available on-line.
The National Park Service “Certified
Local Government” (CLG) Program
This program was created in 1980 under the National
Historic Preservation Act and is administered by the Pennsylvania Historical
and Museum Commission. The Certified Local Government Program provides
additional benefits to municipalities interested in historic preservation. Once
certified, the local government is then eligible for:
·
Direct participation in the
federal historic preservation program,
·
Greater access to historic
preservation funds,
·
Greater level of information
exchange with the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO),
·
Access to technical
assistance and training from the SHPO, and
·
A higher degree of
participation in statewide preservation programs and planning.
This program was established to allow local governments to
participate directly in the national historic preservation program and to
provide funding to local governments to carry out their historic preservation
responsibilities (survey, inventory, designation and protection of their
historic resources). To achieve CLG
status in
Critical requirements
for CLG designation are:
·
adopt and enforce
appropriate legislation for designation and protection of historic properties,
·
establish a qualified
historic preservation commission,
·
enact a system for surveying
historic properties,
·
enact a public participation
component as part of the local program,
·
adequately perform duties
and responsibilities delegated through the certification process,
·
provide continuing
in-service historic preservation training for HARB and Historical Commission
members (8 hours training annually per member),
·
a good faith effort to
appoint HARB members with appropriate professional qualifications for historic
preservation backgrounds,
·
submit an annual report of
the municipality’s historic preservation activities, and
·
enforce the historic
district ordinance.