CONCORD, NH – Nonprofit organizations that want to apply for a matching grant of up to $10,000 for maintenance work on a historic preservation project have until Monday, Jan. 6, to file a letter of inquiry.
The 1:1 matching grants from New Hampshire Preservation and the 1772 Foundation range from $2,000 to $10,000.
Organizations who want to apply must have a 501(c)(3) IRS designation and own, or have a long-term lease, on the building. Eligible projects include exterior painting, finishes and surface restoration; upgrades to or installation of fire detection; lightning protection and security systems; repairs to or restoration of porches, roofs and windows; structural foundation and sill repair or replacement and chimney and masonry repointing.
Also taken into account are uniqueness or significance of the resource, visibility within the community, availability of additional funding, imminence or severity of threat to the resource, a demonstrated understanding of the building’s needs, and the proposed plan’s adherence to the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties.
Letters of inquiry are accepted through Jan. 6 and invited applicants will be notified on Jan. 30. Applications from those invited are due March 3. Visit nhpreservation.org to apply.
The Rhode Island-based 1772 Foundation partners with historic preservation organizations in the six New England states, New York and Georgia, on the program.
“Small matching grants for brick-and-mortar preservation projects have long played an important role in the 1772 Foundation’s grant making, as it was the passion of its founder, Stewart B. Kean,” B. Danforth Ely, 1772 Foundation Board president, said in 2020 after the first round of grants in the program were awarded.
“The vast response to this grant has also shown to the foundation how necessary these brick-and-mortar grants are to keeping our historic structures standing,” Ely said.
Grants in New Hampshire over the last five years have supported 74 rehabilitation and restoration projects for a variety of community landmark buildings, the New Hampshire Preservation Alliance said in a news release. Last year, 16 properties across the state shared $125,000 in grant money.
