Governor Laura Kelly Announces Rural Preservation Grant Applications Now Available
TOPEKA –Governor Laura Kelly today announced that applications are now available for the Kansas Historical Society’s Kansas Rural Preservation grant program through the National Park Service, Department of the Interior. Earlier this year, the Kansas Historical Society received a $500,000 grant from the National Park Service’s Paul Bruhn Historic Revitalization Grants Program. Those funds are now being offered through this subgrant program to the owners of historic properties for repair and rehabilitation projects.
A complete program description, application information, and application link are available online at kshs.org/20430. The application deadline is midnight on March 1, 2021. Applications must be submitted online via the weblink above.
“The Kansas Historical Society has been actively working to preserve and share Kansas history for nearly 150 years,” Governor Laura Kelly said. “The Paul Bruhn grants will go a long way in ensuring historic properties across the state can get the upkeep and treatment they need, so we can continue to celebrate and learn about our rich history for generations to come.”
Applicants must own a property listed in the National Register of Historic Places individually or as a contributing property in a National Register-listed historic district or have their property determined eligible for listing before the grant application is submitted. Properties determined eligible must be listed officially to the National Register during the grant period. The property must be within a community with a population of less than 30,000 according to the 2010 U.S. Census and applicants must provide justification of their rural location as part of the application. Property owners may not be the State or federal governments.
Grantees can receive between $5,000 and $50,000. The grant reimburses 90 percent of eligible project activities up to the award amount and grant recipients shall provide 10 percent of the cost of eligible project activities as match.
All rehabilitation work must comply with the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards & Guidelines for Archeology and Historic Preservation. Eligible activities include professional services (architect and engineering fees) and projects involving the preservation, rehabilitation, or restoration of an eligible property. Repairs involving building components such as walls, doors, windows, chimneys, roofing, and foundations are eligible activities. Projects involving the preservation or restoration of non-building properties such as archeological sites, parks, cemeteries, bridges, and monuments are also eligible. Because this grant is supported by funding administered by the National Park Service, projects must follow federal project requirements including competitive selection of contractors and consultants. In addition, an easement will be placed on the property following the project completion.
Kansas Historical Society staff members will offer a free webinar with specifics for this program at 1 p.m. Thursday, December 17, 2020. Staff members will discuss the application process, approaches to writing the application, and answer questions about the program. Contact the Historic Preservation Office at 785-272-8681, ext. 240; or [email protected] to register for this workshop or to request additional information.