By Kathy Oswalt-Forsythe
Cheri Szcodronski, architectural historian and owner of Firefly Preservation Consulting, LLC, has completed her draft nomination and recommendation that a Vicksburg historic district be added to the National Register of Historic Places. She has submitted her draft to the National Register Coordinator at the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO).
Szcodronski was hired in 2019 by Paper City Development to research the architectural history of buildings in the village and to prepare the historic district nomination. The National Register program does not impose any regulations or restrictions on private property owners, and the program is used to determine eligibility for financial incentive programs. Michigan’s historic tax credit program was reinstated effective January 1, 2021, opening the opportunity for both state and federal tax credits to help with eligible building preservation of commercial and residential properties within the historic district.
This National Register nomination process is long and detailed.
After this initial review, SHPO’s coordinator will return the draft to Szcodronski, with edits and suggestions. Szcodronski will revise and return the draft, then wait to present the nomination during a meeting of the State Historic Preservation Review Board. This board meets in January, May, and September and gives final approval at the state level for all National Register nominations.
Public notice will be given to all property owners within the proposed historic district boundary no more than 30 days prior to the review board’s meeting. During the local public meeting, someone from SHPO will talk about the National Register program, Szcodronski will talk about her findings and the historic district nomination, and property owners and community members will have a chance to ask any questions they may have about the nomination.
Szcodronski will then present the nomination to the state review board, and once approved by that group, the SHPO staff will have 45 days to forward the nomination to the National Park Service, who will have 45 days after receiving the nomination to review it.
So for now, Szcodronski’s waiting for the return of the first draft.
Watch for updates in November’s South County News.