Construction Administration Speaker Series: Cents and Sensibility: The Multiple Benefits of Historic Preservation

In a country where publicly-owned lands are routinely used for private industry and profit, the prospect of limiting private property rights through the passage of a local landmarks law can be grounds for an insurrection.

As a counter-measure, the federal government passed legislation in 1980 to provide tax benefits to commercial property owners and developers who commit to large-scale building rehabilitations. Since then, the federal Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credit program has become a model for many state tax credit programs that reward both commercial and homeowner interests.

This seminar will delve into the specifics of these benefits and others, while also exploring the public purpose inherent in these government-subsidized programs. In doing so, “Cents and Sensibility: The Multiple Benefits of Historic Preservation” intends to answer the central question about historic preservation incentives:  What's in it for me?