2012 Federal Historic Preservation Grants
Stabilization Grant: Historic Beaufort Foundation replaced the roof at the John Mark Verdier House
Applications will be accepted until 5:00 PM, February 3, 2012.
Grants will be awarded in Spring 2012.
Historic Preservation Grants are federal funds from the US Department of the Interior, National Park Service, and administered by the South Carolina Department of Archives and History. Funds for the grant program are derived from Outer Continental Shelf mineral receipts. Each year the NPS allocates funds to the SHPO to help cover the cost of its operations, salaries and grants. Ten percent of those grant funds awarded to the SHPO must be passed through to Certified Local Governments (CLGs) per federal regulations. The SHPO awards additional grant monies to non-CLG projects to help support local historic preservation activities when funding levels permit. Grants reimburse up to 50% of project costs.
Eligible applicants
Any local government, non-profit, or institution in South Carolina may apply for a Federal Historic Preservation Grant. The SHPO’s first priority will be to fund projects in South Carolina’s CLGs. If funding is available after the required CLG minimum is met, then non-CLG projects may also be selected for funding. Stabilization projects are limited to projects in the 32 Certified Local Government (CLG) communities.
South Carolina's CLGs (31 cities and 1 county) are: Abbeville, Aiken, Anderson, Beaufort, Bennettsville, Bluffton, Blythewood, Charleston, Cheraw, Chester, Chesterfield, Columbia, Conway, Darlington, Dillon, Florence, Fort Mill, Georgetown, Greenville, Greer, Horry County, Laurens, Lexington, McClellanville, McCormick, Mount Pleasant, Rock Hill, Seneca, Spartanburg, Sullivan’s Island, Sumter, and York.
Survey and Planning Projects
Survey and Planning Grants are encouraged for a variety of historic preservation projects under the following categories:
Surveys to record historic properties with historical or architectural importance in a town or county
Studies that identify potential locations of archaeological sites
National Register nominations for historic districts or multiple properties
Planning for Historic Districts and Multiple Historic Properties
Plans for historic districts which may include recommendations for streetscape improvements, landscaping, traffic flow, parking, building use, guidelines for new construction, zoning, gateways, etc.
Recommendations for rehabilitating facades in historic districts
Preparation of an historic preservation overlay zoning ordinance, or revision to an existing ordinance
Preparation of, or revisions to, the historic properties sections of local comprehensive plans
Strengthening Local Government Historic Preservation Programs
Development and publication of design guidelines for planning and reviewing changes to locally designated historic properties and new construction in historic districts
Writing or amending preservation ordinances
Publications to inform and educate property owners in locally designated historic districts
Preservation Education
Preservation workshops or conferences
Curriculum materials for public schools
Publications highlighting historic properties identified through surveys
Technical assistance programs for owners of historic properties
Planning for Individual Historic Properties
Feasibility and adaptive re-use studies for a historic building
Conditions assessment for a historic building
Plans and specifications for repairs to a historic building
Studies and management plans for archaeological sites
Stabilization Projects
CLG grant funds may be used to help pay for stabilization repairs to National Register-listed buildings (excluding churches and church-owned property). Examples of eligible projects include replacing a leaking roof, repairing the structural framework of a building, and repairing deteriorated doors and windows to make a building watertight. Projects that are not eligible include routine maintenance, climate control, and plumbing or electrical. Interior work is not eligible unless it is structural. All work must meet the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation. Stabilization projects require a preservation covenant agreement of up to 20 years be recorded with the property deed.
To be considered for funding, applications for Stabilization projects should include complete “bid-ready” plans and specifications for proposed work prepared by an architect or appropriate qualified professional. Applications may include a budget line to help pay for design fees, but projects that have already completed this step outside of the grant will be given priority consideration.
Grant Requirements
Match and reimbursement
Because these are 50/50 reimbursable matching grants, each grant applicant must demonstrate a dollar-for-dollar match and pay for the project costs up front. Matching funds must be from any non-federal source, except in the case of Community Development Block Grant funds and certain tribal funds. The South Carolina Department of Archives and History will reimburse grantees after it approves the project work and receives appropriate documentation of expenditures.
Amounts available
Grant awards usually range from $2,500 to $25,000. The maximum amount awarded is $30,000. The SHPO anticipates that up to a total of $100,000 will be available for all grants.
Project work
Project work must be carried out by professionals and will be subject to review and approval by the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO). All work must comply with the Secretary of the Interior’s "Standards for Archaeology and Historic Preservation" and SHPO's guidelines and standards. You cannot be reimbursed retroactively for work completed prior to the grant award.