NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES

The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the nation's historic and archaeological resources worthy of preservation. The register is a national inventory to which public agencies as well as private citizens may refer. It contains buildings, districts, historic and prehistoric sites, structures, and objects significant on a national, state, or local level.

The National Register is administered by the National Park Service under the Secretary of the Interior. In each state, a state preservation office, guided by a State Historic Preservation Officer (SHPO), conducts the program and related preservation activities. In Colorado, the Office of Archaeology and Historic Preservation (OAHP), a part of the Colorado Historical Society, administers these programs.

The National Register is intended primarily for use as a planning tool to encourage preservation without restraint upon private property interests. Listing of a property does not impose any responsibilities upon the private property owner for maintenance or restoration. A private owner may alter or demolish a National Register site without consultation with OAHP or the National Park Service. However, the result of any such action that compromises the historic character of a site may cause the property to be removed from the register.

BENEFITS OF LISTING

The National Register formally recognizes properties possessing a documented level of significance and that contribute to the understanding and appreciation of the history or prehistory of a community, the state, or the nation. By honoring such important sites, the National Register accomplishes the following:

increases pride of ownership and expands community interest and appreciation of its cultural resources;

stimulates local preservation planning;

develops local interest and support of neighborhood and commercial revitalization;

creates a body of information available for community promotion purposes by such local and state agencies as chambers of commerce and tourism departments;

encourages the renovation of income-producing properties and revitalization of historic commercial districts and residential neighborhoods through tax incentives. These incentives include investment tax credits toward approved renovation costs of listed commercial, industrial, or rental residential buildings;

qualifies a property to compete for grants from Colorado's State Historical Fund. These grants may be used for acquisition and development, education, and survey and planning projects;

permits easement donations. Buildings, structures, and open spaces listed on the National Register qualify under the Federal Income Tax Regulations and the Colorado conservation easement statute as certified properties for the donation of a conservation easement. Such a donation enables the property owner to protect a property in perpetuity and allows for a charitable contribution deduction;

provides limited protection to listed or eligible sites from adverse actions by federal agencies or agencies using federal funds. Such agencies must request the comments of the SHPO as well as the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation before beginning projects affecting historic properties. The purpose of this consultation is not to impede or halt development, but rather to assure that the value of historic properties is given direct consideration in federal project planning decisions;

qualifies a property to receive federal assistance for historic preservation, when funds are available. Funds are presently unavailable.

RESTRICTIONS

There are no restrictions imposed by the National Register as to what private property owners may or may not do with their property. Private property owners may alter or demolish a listed property subject only to applicable local government regulations and permitting procedures. In some communities, properties listed in the National Register may be automatically designated as local landmarks. Such landmark status may include the local review of proposed changes to the property through the application of design guidelines. A list of Colorado communities with local landmarking programs is available from this website.

NOMINATION CRITERIA

The criteria established for the evaluation of sites and documentation standards required for recordation have been set by the National Park Service and are uniform throughout the nation. All nominated sites must be over 50 years old with their original historic character well preserved and the integrity of setting and materials retained. Buildings or districts that are in a state of ruin do not qualify unless it can be demonstrated that the site has historic archaeological potential. Nominations must be based on one or more of the following areas of significance:

1. association with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of our history.
   
   
2. association with the lives of persons significant in our past.
   
   
3. embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of construction or represents the work of a master, or possesses high artistic values, or represents a significant and distinguishable entity whose components lack individual distinction.
   
   
4. has yielded, or is likely to yield, information important in prehistory or history.

Ordinarily cemeteries, birthplaces or graves of historical figures, properties owned by religious institutions or for religious purposes, structures that have been moved from their original locations, reconstructed historic buildings, properties primarily commemorative in nature, and properties that have achieved significance within the past 50 years are not considered eligible for the National Register. However, such properties will qualify if they are integral parts of districts that do meet the criteria or if they fall within the following categories:

1. a religious property deriving primary significance from architectural or artistic distinction or historical importance; or
   
   
2. a building or structure removed from its original location but which is significant primarily for architectural value, or which is the surviving structure most importantly associated with an historic person or event; or
   
   
3. a birthplace or grave of a historical figure of outstanding importance if there is no other appropriate site or building directly associated with his/her productive life; or
   
   
4. a cemetery that derives its primary significance from graves of persons of transcendent importance, from age, from distinctive design features, or from association with historic events; or
   
   
5. a reconstructed building when accurately executed in a suitable environment and presented in a dignified manner as part of a reconstruction master plan, and when no other building or structure with the same association has survived; or
   
   
6. a property primarily commemorative in intent of design, age, tradition, or symbolic value has invested it with its own historical significance; or
   
   
7. a property achieving significance within the past 50 years if it is of exceptional importance.

NOMINATION PROCESS

It is the responsibility of the OAHP initially to determine if sites appear to meet the National Register criteria. For an evaluation, basic information must be submitted on a state inventory form with a photograph(s) and a map locating the site. Anyone may request such an evaluation of a property. However, once a site is determined potentially eligible, nomination of a private property cannot proceed without owner consent. Nomination consists of the following procedure:

1. If it is determined by the OAHP that the property appears to meet the criteria for listing in the National Register, the OAHP recommends that the owner or interested party proceed with the full documentation and nomination of the site. The information must be recorded on a National Register nomination form and must conform to standards established by the National Park Service. The staff of the OAHP will provide guidance to all those preparing nominations.
   
   
2. The OAHP schedules the presentation of the nomination to the Colorado Historic Preservation Review Board which meets three or four times a year. The Review Board, appointed by the Governor and the SHPO, is an independent body composed of both lay members and professionals representing the disciplines of prehistoric and historic archaeology, history, and architecture.
   
   Owners of properties being nominated individually are notified 30 days in advance in order to give the owner an adequate period for comment. Notification of owners within districts consisting of more than 50 properties is by public notice, printed in the largest circulation newspaper in the vicinity of the district, at least 30 days prior to the Review Board meeting. The owner of a property which is nominated individually must consent to nomination. With the nomination of districts, 51% of owners of properties within the boundaries must object by notarized letter to halt formal listing.
   
   
3. If the Review Board approves the nomination and the SHPO concurs with eligibility, the nomination is forwarded to the Keeper of the National Register in Washington, D.C. who makes the final decision concerning listing. The National Register staff in Washington reviews and acts on the nomination within 45 days of receipt of the form.
   
   
4. The SHPO is notified of the decision of the Keeper of the National Register and subsequently notifies the owner(s) of the approval of the nomination and listing of the property or returns the nomination for additional information.
   

For additional information, please visit the National Register of Historic Places website.