[MassHistPres] Local Preservation Update E-Newsletter-October 15, 2015

[Skelly, Christopher (SEC)]

LOCAL PRESERVATION UPDATE E-NEWSLETTER
Published by the Massachusetts Historical Commission

October 15, 2015


MHC SURVEY AND PLANNING GRANT PRE-APPLICATIONS NOW AVAILABLE
The Massachusetts Historical Commission (MHC) Fiscal Year 2016 Survey and Planning Grant cycle is underway.   For the FY 2016 round, eligible applicants will include all local historical commissions, local historic district commissions, municipal planning offices, and other public and non-profit historic preservation organizations.  At the time of this writing total available funding for the FY 2016 matching grant round is still contingent on MHC's FY 2016 federal budget allocation, which has not yet been determined.  For FY 2016 the MHC/Grantee match shares will be 50/50. As the State Historic Preservation Office, the Massachusetts Historical Commission is responsible for administering the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended. The Act authorizes the Secretary of the Interior, through the National Park Service and State Historic Preservation Offices, to grant funds to communities and private non-profit organizations for a wide range of preservation related activities. These include completion of cultural resource inventories, nomination of significant properties to the National Register of Historic Places, completion of community-wide preservation plans, and other types of studies, reports, publications and projects that relate to the identification and protection of significant historic properties and sites. The goal of the Survey and Planning Grant program is to support efforts to identify and plan for the protection of the significant historic buildings, structures, archaeological sites and landscapes of the Commonwealth. With this announcement, the MHC is initiating the Fiscal Year 2016 grant round of funding for Certified Local Governments (CLGs), municipal historic preservation commissions, non-profit organizations and other eligible applicants.   (MHC is required under federal law to pass through 10% of its annual federal budget allocation to CLGs.  CLGs in Massachusetts are the municipalities of Boston, Bedford, Brookline, Danvers, Eastham, Falmouth, Grafton, Hingham, Holyoke, Lexington, Lowell, Marblehead, Medfield, Medford, Methuen, New Bedford, Newton, Plymouth, Quincy, Salem, Somerville, and Worcester.)  In Fiscal Year 2016 the grant program will be available to both CLG and non-CLG municipalities, as well as other qualified applicants. A Survey and Planning grant can provide critical support for projects that help to preserve the character of your community. Please consider applying for a grant by completing a pre application and returning it to the Massachusetts Historical Commission by Monday, November 16, 2015, 5 p.m. (no faxed or emailed applications accepted).  Additional information, guidelines and the pre-application form are available on MHC's web site at: http://www.sec.state.ma.us/mhc/mhchpp/Surveyandplanning.htm<https://owa.sec.state.ma.us/OWA/redir.aspx?C=8ea95d25771c48c0b6ea2e7876c86925&URL=http%3a%2f%2fwww.sec.state.ma.us%2fmhc%2fmhchpp%2fSurveyandplanning.htm>

WORKSHOP ON CEMETERY PRESERVATION
The Western Massachusetts Historical Commission Coalition is holding a workshop on Cemetery Preservation on Wednesday, October 21, from 10am-12pm.  Speakers will include Martha Lyon, Martha Lyon Landscape Architecture LLC; Wendy Pearl, Mass Department of Conservation and Recreation; and Ellen Berkland, Mass Department of Conservation and Recreation. The workshop will be held at the offices of the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission in Springfield.  The workshop is free but pre-registration at this event is required.  Coffee and refreshments will be provided. For more information and to register for the event, contact Elizabeth Rairigh at erairigh at pvpc.org<mailto:erairigh at pvpc.org>.

PEABODY EXTENDS DEMOLITION DELAY TO 12 MONTHS
The city of Peabody recently extended their demolition delay ordinance to 12 months.  Of the 146 cities and towns with demolition delay, 33 have a 12 month delay and 8 have an 18 month delay.  Several municipalities are currently investigating extending to 24 months and longer.



CALENDAR OF EVENTS AND DATES TO REMEMBER

October 19, 2015
MHC Workshop-Administering Demolition Delay Bylaws and Ordinances.  Lawrence.  7:30pm.  For more information, contact Christopher.Skelly at state.ma.us<mailto:Christopher.Skelly at state.ma.us>.

October 21, 2015
Workshop on Cemetery Preservation.  Pioneer Valley Planning Commission. Springfield.  10am.  For more information, see above.
November 16, 2015
Survey and Planning Grant pre-applications due.  For more information, see above.

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Please forward this newsletter on to others that may be interested.  If you are receiving this as a forwarded message and would like to receive it directly, please contact the Massachusetts Historical Commission.   The Massachusetts Historical Commission also has a listserve, known as masshistpres, specifically for historic preservation.  You can join this listserve by visiting http://mailman.cs.umb.edu/mailman/listinfo/masshistpres.  This newsletter is posted on masshistpres directly and sent to local commission members.  We welcome your thoughts on what you would like to see in this newsletter.  The website for the Massachusetts Historical Commission is http://www.sec.state.ma.us/mhc/mhcidx.htm

Christopher C. Skelly
Director of Local Government Programs
Massachusetts Historical Commission
Christopher.Skelly at state.ma.us<mailto:Christopher.Skelly at state.ma.us>




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