Historic tax credits
The Victorian house book : a practical guide to home repair and decoration
Robin Guild.
Buffalo, N.Y. ; Richmond Hill, Ont. : Firefly Books, 2008.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Fabrics for historic buildings : a guide for selecting reproduction fabrics
Jane C. Nylander, Richard C. Nylander.
Hoboken, N.J. : Preservation Press, c2005.
This reference combines two previous volumes, Fabrics for Historic Buildings and Wallpapers for Historic Buildings to provide a simple resource for those restoring or researching American houses built between 1700 and 1900. It includes more than 1000 authentically reproduced wallpaper designs and 600 fabric types and patterns. Jane Nylander (director, Strawbery Banke Museum, Portsmouth, New Hampshire) and Richard Nylander (chief curator and director of collections for the Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities, Boston) offer advice for choosing, buying and installing the appropriate fabrics for historic interiors. Annotation ©2005 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
Illustrated dictionary of architectural preservation : restoration, renovation, rehabilitation, reuse
Ernest Burden.
New York : McGraw-Hill, c2004.
"Professionals and students alike will refer to this treasure trove of information and images again and again for practical solutions in preservation - and for pure visual pleasure. The unique, visual approach to restoration, convenient A-to-Z organization, and extensive cross-referencing make this must-have volume as easy to use as it is indispensable. Readers will find abundant information and examples on adaptive reuse...the creation of designated historic districts...structural restoration of landmark buildings...and cleaning and preserving great works of architecture...by leading historic preservation firms."--BOOK JACKET.
St. Louis Union Station
Albert Montesi and Richard Deposki.
Chicago, IL : Arcadia, c2002.
When St. Louis' Union Station opened to the public in 1894, nearly 10,000 people gathered to celebrate. What they saw rivaled famed stations in the East, with its barrel-vaulted ceiling, sweeping archways, and Tiffany stained-glass windows. Modeled after the walled city of Carcassonne, France, Union Station was one of the busiest in the world during its heyday. Follow the history of this great architectural triumph from its original glory days through its demise and rebirth.
Financial incentives to renovate historic buildings are available from state and federal sources. Programs that provide tax credits have been a boon to St. Louis developers. $170 million in credits were issued in Missouri in 2006 with much of that going to buildings in St. Louis’ old neighborhoods.
Using a variety of tax incentives a developer can recover significant costs of a renovation. The credits supplement a project so that careful preservation and restoration is financially feasible. Renovating a building is usually more expensive than building new and this program alleviates some of the financial risk for developers, making historic rehab a competitive market reality.
Buildings need to qualify for the tax credit programs and can do that in a variety of ways. The most common is to be named a “contributing” building in a recognized historic district. Buildings with this designation need not be significant in their own right—the purpose of the tax credit program is to preserve America’s historic past, and each building in an historic neighborhood contributes to that fabric.
|
Windows are a key element in appropriate historic renovation. There is no one single element that expresses the historic nature of the building as well as windows.
Original windows should be thoroughly repaired whenever possible.
If repair is not feasible, new windows should closely match the original. The material, size, pane configuration, color, and trim details need to match. |
Developers need to follow rehabilitation standards to earn the credits. Standards apply to both the exterior and interior of the buildings depending on which tax incentive program is used. The general intent of historic standards is that a building be preserved as it was originally, taking into consideration economic and technical feasibility. Alterations are kept to a minimum.
St. Louis has many historic buildings. These programs can help preserve them into the next century.
Article by: St. Louis Public Library staff.
