Developer's Council Recap: Can preservation and development offer mutual benefits?

Earlier this week, we were joined by our friend and local historian, Monica Kile, to take a trolley tour of St. Pete, highlighting historic properties that are eligible for tax credits. Mark Parker from the St. Pete Catalyst attended and wrote an article recapping the tour, click here to read the article. Monica has provided some additional resources to learn more about local historic properties that are eligible for tax credits, read more below.

If you are interested in learning more about local historic properties that are eligible for tax credits, click here to access an interactive map with a wealth of information on St. Pete's landmarks (both Local and National, as well as buildings that are included on the Potentially Eligible List.There is a toolbar on the left with menu items that expand when you click on the arrow next to them. Choices of different map views will then appear, including Landmarks, Districts, etc. Note: you have to further drop down in those categories until check-boxes appear, where you can then specify what you want to see (local landmarks, PEL buildings, National Register Districts, etc.).

There are two types of Landmarks and Districts: Local and National. Local landmarks are individual buildings that have been locally designated as significant. Local landmarks are subject to the city's Certificate of Approval process that reviews major exterior changes to the building (including potential demolition.) National Landmark designation is purely "honorary" and confers no local protections, but does offer federal tax benefits in some cases. Most notable is the 20% credit for eligible renovation expenses of a national landmark or contributing structure in a National Register Historic District. Click here for more info.

Click here for a PDF that lists all of the tax credit projects that have been conducted in Florida over the past 20 years. There aren't many in St. Pete, but lots in communities like Jacksonville and Miami.

Buildings within a district (both local and national) are considered either contributing or non-contributing. A contributing building has recognized historic value. Proposed demolition of buildings in the downtown National Register Historic District can trigger the public review process of the Development Review Committee because of criterion 14 of the land use code, so developers would be well-served to research if a potential project is going to demolish or adversely impact a contributing structure in one of the historic districts.

The Potentially Eligible List was created as part of Mayor Baker's Historic Preservation Summit in the early 2000s as a way to inventory buildings that had historic value, but had not yet been designated as local landmarks. It holds no restrictions or benefits, other than this: if a building is on the PEL list and a demolition notice is filed for it, it triggers a 30 day stay on demolition and a public notice of the demolition application.

If you have any additional questions, please reach out to Monica Kile at kileresearch@gmail.com.