Buildings located in North Dakota Renaissance Zones may be eligible for historic rehabilitation tax credits. Buildings which are eligible under the Renaissance Zone are listed or eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places, the State Historic Sites Registry, and/or a local register. Local register designations are ordinarily completed under a municipality's preservation ordinance. Contact your municipality for further information about local register designation.

The State Historical Society of North Dakota evaluates buildings for their eligibility in the National and State Registers. For some cities, the eligibility evaluations were completed recently, are stored at the State Historical Society in Bismarck, were gathered by your municipality, and are listed in your city's Renaissance Zone plan. Please consult your municipality's Renaissance Zone plan to see if the evaluation step is already complete.

When evaluations are more than 10 years old, a new evaluation is required.

The information below is required to evaluate the building for National and State Register eligibility. See sidebar for National Register Criteria for Eligibility.

The following numbered instructions relate to the Eligibility Evaluation Form linked to this page.

1. Society's Site Number. If the building has been evaluated for eligibility, the State Historical Society has assigned a collection number beginning with the number 32, followed by a two-letter county code and number, i.e.: 32 CS 1280. This sample number would mean the site is located in North Dakota, Cass County, and was the 1,280^th property added to the permanent survey files.

The site number is a permanent identification number and should be used in all follow-up communications. The number will help to quickly locate your file and to speed up the evaluation and rehabilitation review of your project.

2. Current Owner's Name, Address, Phone, Fax, and Email.

3. Street Address and Township-Range-Section of Historic Building.

4. Construction Date and Alteration Dates. Usually found in property tax assessment and building permit records.

5. First Owner(s) of Historic Building. Usually found in property deed. Match the date of construction with the dates of ownership. Often the first owner of the land did not build the structures.

6. Architect's name. Usually found in building permit records.

7. Description of Associations between the building and persons/events of historic significance. List references (local historian, centennial book, etc.) See sidebar for National Register criteria.

8. Additional information. Send any additional information that would be relevant to the eligibility assessment.

9. Description of Rehabilitation Plans. Provide a one- to two-paragraph overview of your rehabilitation plans and the approximate completion date of rehabilitation work.

10. Federal Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credit. Check "yes" or "no" if you are applying for the credits.

11. Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation. Check "yes" or "no" if you have read the Secretary's Standards. To Read National Park Service website information on the Secretary's Standards.

12. 35mm Photographs. Show views of

1. Entire front & one side of building
2. Entire back & other side of building
3. Interior views of primary spaces

Submit actual photographs - not photocopies or digitized images! Attach and send photographs with the Eligibility Evaluation Form.

13. City Map. Mark the location of your historic building on a city map and a USGS topographic map. Include Renaissance Zone boundaries on the city map to verify the inclusion of your building. Attach and send the marked maps with your Eligibility Evaluation Form.

14. List other attachments. Verifies whether your materials are attached or under a separate cover.

15. Submit to: Historic Preservation Division
State Historical Society of North Dakota North Dakota Heritage Center
612 E. Boulevard Avenue
Bismarck, ND 58505-0830

At this time, Eligibility Evaluation Forms may not be submitted electronically because submitting attachments separately will slow the review and processing of your application.

If a Society Site Number has not been previously assigned, the submission of the National and State Register Building Evalutation Form will result in the assignment of a new site number. Please use this site number on all follow-up communications. It will help in quickly locating your file and speed up the evaluation and rehabilitation review of your project.

Fill out the National and State Register Building Eligibility Evaluation Form.

What's Next?

If your building meets the National Register and/or State Registry criteria, the State Historical Society will notify you via telephone within 10 working days of receipt. The phone call will be followed up by a letter of verification to you and to the Division of Community Services that your building is eligible.

Owners of eligible buildings also will receive a Historic Preservation Certification Application from the State Historical Society. This form is the actual application for applying for the federal historic rehabilitation credit. It was chosen because it would expedite the process for owners applying for both state and federal rehabilitation incentives.

e-mail: histsoc@state.nd.us

Copyright ©2000 State Historical Society of North Dakota. You are free to use information or non-copyrighted images from these pages for any non-commercial purpose. Any use of this information should credit the State Historical Society of North Dakota.

This page last updated September 10, 2004