Historic Preservation Grant Funds – Preservation in Print

BY – Karen McKinney, Architect, AJA, Technical Grants Manager

THE DIVISIONS OF Historic Preservation and Archaeology were able to support twelve projects around the state during the 2024-2025 fiscal year with continued support from the Historic Preservation Fund (HPF) Grant. Funds were awarded to the state by the U.S. Department of the Interior via the National Park Service (NPS) with congressionally allocated funds derived from a portion of the royalties paid by energy companies drilling for oil and natural gas on the Outer Continental Shel£ The HPF Grant regularly funds state and tribal government programs that preserve historic resources and archaeological sites across the nation.

In Louisiana, through the Department of Culture, Recreation, and Tourism, Office of Cultural Development, a portion of HPF Grant funds is awarded annually for subgrant projects through a competitive application process reviewed by an independent panel. Subgrants are available to non-profits, educational institutions, historic district commissions, governmental entities, and Certified Local Governments (CLG).

Projects must fall within the NPS specified program areas and include professionals who meet the Secretary of the Interior Professional Qualification Standards for the type of work proposed. Other requirements include, but are not limited to complete budget & timeline, W-9 forms, and good standing with the Louisiana Secretary of State. Funds are reimbursed after expenditure, and grantees must contribute a match of at least 40 percent of the total project cost.

Examples of some of the types of projects eligible for funding include:

• Preparation of National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) nominations
• Completing surveys using Louisiana Historic Resource Inventory (LHRI) forms for buildings and archaeological Site Record Forms
• Education, training, and public information activities in historic preservation-related topics
• Development of preservation plans, historic district guidelines, historic structure condition assessments, and feasibility reports for historic resources
• Development of digital content/websites supporting historic resources
• Certified Local Government projects and training programs
• Documentation of historic resources per NPS Heritage Documentation Programs [Historic American Building Survey (HA.BS), Historic American Engineering Record (HAER), and Historic American Landscape Survey (HALS)]

Between October 1, 2024, and September 15, 2025, subgrant projects included new NRHP nominations for individual properties and historic districts, updated surveys to existing NRHP historic districts, documentation projects, and one feasibility report.

The subgrant funds also supported public education in historic preservation and related topics. Many community projects begin with small, local public education efforts. Through a series of presentations that featured professionals in the fields of historic preservation, architecture, and community culture, NUNU Arts and Culture Collective brought the St. Landry parish communities of Grand Coteau, Arnaudville, and Sunset together. As the Lafayette city-parish municipality continues to grow, these small communities directly to the north along Interstate 49 face a future as suburbs of the larger municipality. Concerned citizens were invited to attend the “Building With” series between May and August to gain information about their im:al historic resources and the programs available to support their continued independent cultural identities. Videos of the presentations are available on You Tube. 

Another community-based project with public input occurred in West Monroe. The Certified Local Government (CLG) community worked with Consultants Atlas Community Studios to develop a Feasibility Study for potential uses of the historic NRHP-listed First United Methodist Church in downtown. The building had remained vacant for over ten years despite its location on a large property immediately adjacent to the thriving downtown. Research for the report included community meetings, market studies, zoning and development constraints, building conditions, and ownership status. The final report included recommendations for a multi-part reuse concept: live performance and arts education; speakeasy lounge; and outdoor event space with a food truck court. It also reviewed potential funding and partnerships, long-term sustainability, and tenant identification.

As evidenced by the preVious two projects, public education comes in many forms. For the Friends of the New Orleans Public Library; this included bringing historic records of the Housing Authority of New Orleans off of library shelves and into a new grant-funded digital collection. Former residents, board members, staff, and their descendants, as well as researchers, are now able to access photographs, annual reports, and other housing records from the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s. The collection is available at the New Orleans Public Library, City Archives and Special Collections, Housing Authority of New Orleans, website at https:/ /archives-nolalibrary.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/ collection/p16880coll81.

For the Louisiana Trust for Historic Preservation, public education combined with resource documentation resulted in three new NRHP nominations. Two individual nominations included the Sikes High School (Winn Parish) and the Young Men’s Protective League Union Benevolent Association Hall (Jefferson Parish). The third grant project was a single historic district nomination for the Town of Dubach (Lincoln Parish). Consultants Richardson Preservation Consulting and Istoria Cultural Resource Management brought attention to these three resources previously neglected in the larger historical narrative. The Young Men’s Association was founded in 1881 to aid members of the black community with health issues and burialsin the wake of the Civil War. The present building was constructed in 1924 to house the Association and support these efforts, which continue to the present day. For Sikes High School and the Town of Dubach, the lack of attention came from their rural locations. For each, small groups of determined individuals were able to focus their efforts, which resulted in the nominations. Rural location also played a role in the subgrant project that was supported by the Richland Parish Chamber of Commerce. Although the Downtown Delhi Historic District was listed in 1997, it was fairly small and included only 23 resources. The proposed NRHP update would extend the period of significance from 1945 to 1965 and would add 115 properties, for a total of 138 resources. The same subgrant project also included a new NRHP historic district nomination for the Town of Rayville. The proposed district would include approximately 200 newly identified historic resources.

Subgrant projects also included new surveys for some previously identified historic resources: two CLG communities and one individually listed location. Slidell was partially resurveyed by Terracon Consultants as the first phase of an effort to include properties previously comitted from the local historic district. An additional sixty-two historic resources were identified in this phase. The second CLG, the Central Business District in downtown Baton Rouge, was surveyed by Southkick Rolf Preservation Works as the first component for new or updated NRHP nominations. For the Poverty Point Station ArchaeologyProgram (PPSAP) of the University of Louisiana-Monroe, the surveys included investigation of potentially culturally related sites. These locations are nearby but outside of the Poverty Point World Heritage Site existing designated area (https://www.povertypoint.us) and provide educational programming to students and the public while defining connections between the existing state park and local landowners.

Successful listing on the NRHP brings with it the ability to apply for historic tax credits (income-producing properties) and other grant-funded programs. Once listed, buildings, structures, and sites may be documented through the NPS Heritage Documentation Program. The Historic American Buildings Survey was established in 1933 to document the architectural heritage of the nation, with the resulting drawings, photographs, and reports archived and accessible to the public in the Library of Congress. The program was later expanded to also include the Historic American Engineering Record (HAER) and Historic American Landscape Survey (HALS). During the 2024-25 fiscal year, two subgrants were awarded for HALS documentation projects. Louisiana Housing Lab completed documentation of the Menachim Aveilim (Hebrew Rest) Cemetery; a contributing resource to the Freetown-Port Rico Historic District in Lafayette. The project included measured drawings of gravestones and monuments with a list of “residents” of the cemetery, a historical report, photographs, LHRI and Site Record forms, and a story map that can be viewed at https://arcgis/0KKq011. 

The second HALS documentation project included the NRHP-listed Afton Villa Gardens near St. Francisville. Consisting of over 220 acres, the property includes a cemetery, several buildings, and a water tower. Documents generated for the project included a detailed historical report, measured drawings, photographs, LHRI forms for buildings and structures, and a Site Record Form for the historic cemetery. All documents completed for the HALS program are provided to. the Library of Congress as a permanent archive of historic sites. 

Heritage Documentation Program documents are available to the public at https://www.loc.gov/pictures/ collection/hh/.

The HPF subgrants also supported two organizations that worked closely with the Division of Historic Preservation to fulfill some of the goals in the SHPO State Plan. The Preservation Resource Center of New Orleans publishes articles from the Office of Cultural Development that not only highlight historic preservation, but also the other activities our office supports around the state {such as this article). In addition to the Preservation in Print publication, the grant also supports a digital newsroom that assists the PRC with providing online live-streamed presentations, classes, and more. See https://prcno.org. The Louisiana Trust for Historic Preservation organizes and promotes preservation activities that bring the public into contact with preservation professionals and historic locations around the state. These activities include a statewide preservation-focused conference in a historic district, a Fall and Spring Ramble, and public outreach. For more information, see https:tnthp.org.

The projects completed during the 2024-25 fiscal year included a variety of education, resource identification, and documentation. Each project included benefits to the general public. Resource identification often leads to economic benefits for individual property owners and communities once they are listed on the NRHP. With the subgrant awards, access to and identification of the cultural diversity that makes Louisiana unique were enhanced and preserved for future generations.

For more information about the NPS HPF Grants in Louisiana, see: www.crt.state.la.us/ cultural-development/historic-preservation/ grants/national-park-servicehistoric-preservation-fund-grants/index

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