Brutalism has long been viewed negatively in the architectural community as “monolithic” or “imposing,” but has come back into vogue as changing tastes redefine design. At the same time, many of these buildings, built in the late 1960s through the 1970s, are reaching the 50-year threshold for National Register historic designations; thus, are potentially eligible […]

When you visit a city, you’re bound to see all types of buildings: commercial, residential institutional and ecclesiastical. These come in all ranges of styles and sizes, depending on your location. In more than 30 years of being in the historic real estate redevelopment industry, I’ve seen many types of buildings rehabilitated using historic tax […]

In reviewing projects for historic tax credits (HTCs), the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) and National Park Service (NPS) evaluate proposed work under the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation (Standards). While the Standards are general in nature, there is published guidance to illuminate how the Standards are applied to projects.Essentially, the intent of […]

Using historic tax credits (HTCs) and
successfully completing a hotel rehabilitation
project is a logical choice to cater to the
growing group of heritage-minded tourists. However,
these projects can pose a variety of challenges…

Certain building types, including hotels and residential buildings, often use canopies in the design of the main entrances. Canopies create a transitional space for users of the building between the public street and the private space of the building. The adaptive reuse of such buildings, particularly for hotels or apartments, may benefit from the introduction […]

For a project of benefit from historic tax credits (HTCs), a building must be considered a “certified historic structure,” a path that isn’t always simple.

While America’s love of the open road is legendary, it’s the utilitarian need to park our cars which has a greater impact when it comes to our buildings. While none of us were around, I’m sure one of the first questions after the awe of seeing Henry Ford’s Model T roll down Main Street was […]

Successfully navigating the historic tax credit (HTC) process quite often is the result of anticipating a project’s challenges. Nothing derails a schedule and budget more than being caught off guard by unexpected conditions tied to the Part 2 review, particularly ones that return the project back to basic design development.

Many historic tax credit (HTC) developments involve the construction of an addition onto a historic building to accommodate a proposed programmatic use. Construction of additions is often possible in a HTC project, so long as there is demonstrated need for an addition and provided the addition is designed in a manner that preserves the character of the historic building and is appropriate […]

Happy New Year and welcome to 2016! It’s that time of the year when we make and break resolutions; when we take stock of the developments of the past year and look ahead to those in the year to come. In the spirit of the New Year, it seems appropriate to provide an update regarding […]

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 […]