Resource Center
Preservation Trends & Issues
New EPA Rules on Lead Paint Compatible
with Best Practices for Historic Preservation
Lead paint is a serious health and safety issue. New regulations – known as the renovation, repair, and painting rule – were officially adopted by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and went into effect on April 22, 2010. The stated goal of the new regulations is to protect children from lead-based paint problems by focusing on places built prior to 1978 where children are most likely to be, including housing, schools, and childcare facilities.
Modernism and the Recent Past: What's Worth Saving and How Do We Know
It is difficult to have a good perspective on what is worth saving when the buildings we are talking about were built within our society’s living memory. However, it is important that we start to recognize those modern buildings that are significant and worth preserving.
Section 4(f) of the Department of Transportation Act
Amidst much discussion of the Honolulu High Capacity Rapid Transit it is important to understand the various review processes in place to help protect historic resources impacted by the project. The process preservationists are most familiar with is Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) which requires any project with federal involvement to take into account effects on historic resources. The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) also includes disclosure about impacts to historic and cultural sites. For transportation projects, there is another law that also concerns the protection of historic resources, known as Section 4(f).
Property Tax Exemptions For Commercial and Residential Properties
In recognition that preserving a community’s historic resources is a way to serve the larger public good, many local governments offer economic and other incentives to increase the level of protection of historic buildings. In Hawai‘i, all four counties have made substantial contributions to preserving and rehabilitating historic structures by providing tax exemptions.
Using the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties
The Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties (SoI Standards) were originally published in 1977 and revised in 1990 as part of the Department of the Interior regulations (36 CFR 67, Historic Preservation Certifications). These standards are in place to guide those undertaking projects on historic structures.
Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act: When Does it Apply?
The National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) of 1966 was a significant step in providing a means of protecting our Nation’s history. The Act provides for a National Register of Historic Places to include districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects significant in American history, architecture, archaeology, and culture that have importance at either the national, state or local level. Additionally, it provided funding for State Historic Preservation Officers and their staffs to conduct surveys and comprehensive preservation planning and established standards for state programs and requires states to establish mechanisms for Certified Local Governments to participate in the National Register nomination and funding programs.
Historic Hawai‘i Foundation’s Preservation Resource Center (PRC) provides people with the help they need to save the places they love. Here we explore various trends and issues in historic preservation.
Using Development Incentives for Preservation
While historic property owners must adhere to federal standards for rehabilitation if they want to alter and repair their buildings to ensure historic integrity and compatible alterations, the benefits of being listed on the State and National Register are primarily honorific.
To encourage the preservation of historic buildings, state and local governments may elect to use certain regulatory incentives. Programs for granting additional land use rights in exchange for historic preservation commitments are well established in the land use code and planning practice both in Hawai‘i and in other states.
Preservation Easements Provide For Perpetual Protection
Preservation easements are a tool to ensure that a historic building, with its associated site and character-defining features, can be preserved in perpetuity. Similar to conservation easements, the owner severs certain property rights, including the right to demolish or develop the site, and grants those property rights to a qualified preservation organization.
Certified Local Government Can Help Preserve Local Resources
A Certified Local Government (CLG) is a local historic preservation program established when a county or municipal government passes a historic preservation ordinance to identify, recognize and protect buildings, structures, objects, sites, and districts which have historic importance. The ordinance establishes a volunteer, citizen commission to develop and carry out the local historic preservation program, usually assisted by the county’s planning department.
Teardowns Wiping Out Historic Neighborhoods
Preserving Hawai‘i’s historic neighborhoods is vital to maintaining the character of these places. Think of historic neighborhoods and towns like Kaimukī, Mānoa, Honoka‘a, Lāna‘i City, and Hanapēpē just to name a few. They all evoke specific images in our minds. We like these towns or neighborhoods because they have unique characteristics that make them distinct from other areas. Their history is told through the “sense of place” that the buildings convey, making a neighborhood an attractive and unique place to live. Tearing down buildings in historic neighborhoods wipes away that “sense of place” and creates a sterile environment void of character.
