If the owner of a recently acquired building wishes to pursue the 20 percent federal historic tax credit (HTC), but that building is also subject to local design review, what does it mean for the rehabilitation project? How will it affect the HTCs? There seems to be a myth that there is one all-encompassing historic design review, but nothing could be […]

Water power is as viable today as ever and is being reconnected to provide electricity on historic tax credit (HTC) projects involving mill buildings large and small, providing opportunities to re-establish historic hydropower technologies as a cost effective power source in HTC projects.

There is often wide disagreement about the significance of–and need to preserve–upper-floor corridors in historic tax credit (HTC) developments. Upper-floor corridors were frequently utilitarian in older buildings. They were formed of hollow clay tile with a flat plaster finish. Floors were often terrazzo, though sometimes marble, with a marble or wood base.

The notion of a historic rehabilitation generally conjures up images of Victorian late 19th-century or early 20th-century architecture. Many people don’t realize that buildings constructed as recently as 1965, or possibly more recently, may, in fact, qualify for historic tax credits (HTCs). Increasingly, HTC projects involve the rehabilitation of buildings constructed in the mid-20th century, […]

For some developers, it is not enough to renovate and update a historic building. Rather, they have a vision that links art, architecture and heritage. For some, history and architecture form the basis of interior design, typically expressed by using historic photographs along the corridor walls. Such is the case of the Palmer House in Chicago and the Netherlands Hotel in […]

Typically, when we think of historic tax credit (HTC) projects, we picture large, architecturally significant buildings located in densely populated urban downtowns and commercial areas, such as the IBM Building in Chicago; vast industrial facilities repurposed for residential use, such as the Colt Factory in Hartford Conn.; or textile mills-turned-loft-apartments throughout the mid-Atlantic and New […]

 It is not uncommon in a historic tax credit (HTC) project to need an expansion of a building at the roof to accommodate specific programmatic uses or to accommodate new building systems. Construction of habitable rooftop additions or the installation of rooftop equipment, such as new cooling towers, may be possible in a HTC project, provided […]

The reality of the real estate market is that it is cyclical. Real estate development has arced over the past decade from too hot to frozen and now back to warming. And as experienced a few years ago, the cycle down can be rapid–in some cases stopping a development in the middle of construction. Now that the market is warming again, […]

Windows are among the most challenging aspects of a historic tax credit (HTC) project. Replacement is not automatic–an owner must make a strong case for replacement by documenting that the existing windows are beyond repair. Identifying an appropriate replacement window and presenting that window for approval can be a time-consuming process that can lead to project delays. After a replacement window is approved, […]

When beginning a Historic Tax Credit (HTC) project, one of the most important steps is to understand the building’s status as a “Certified Historic Structure,” as defined in 36CFR67. In order for a project to be eligible for the HTC program, the building must be a certified historic structure. To be considered such, a building must be listed individually in the National […]