April 25, 2013
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The West Virginia Division of Culture and History’s State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO), in conjunction with the Wheeling, Martinsburg and Elkins historic landmark commissions, is sponsoring three intensive training sessions for real estate professionals in early May titled “Historic Preservation: How to Guide Potential Buyers of Historic Properties.”
The workshops will cover myths and facts about historic buildings; typical architectural styles found throughout the state; sustainability and green energy in historic buildings; and financial incentives available to historic property owners. Participants will earn seven hours of continuing education credit from the West Virginia Real Estate Commission.
Doors for all sessions will open at 8:30 a.m. Training starts at 9 a.m. and will last for eight hours. Seating is limited and registration prior to the workshop is strongly recommended.
The Wheeling workshop will be on Friday, May 3, at West Virginia Northern Community College, Education Center, Room 121-E, on the corner of 17th and Chapline streets. To register, contact Tom Connelly at (304) 234-3701 or tconnelly@wheelingwv.gov.
The Martinsburg session will be on Saturday, May 4, at the Berkeley County Council Chambers, Dunn Building, 400 West Stephen St. Contact Todd Funkhouser at (304) 267-4713 or bchs@bchs.org to register.
The Elkins workshop will be on Monday, May 6, at the Darden House, 421 Davis Ave. Contact Phyllis Baxter at (304) 636-6182 or phyllisb@meer.net to register.
The workshop speakers are Robin Zeigler and Jennifer Brennan. Zeigler is a former senior historic preservation planner for the Planning Division of the Salt Lake City Corp., and former preservation planner for the city of Bowling Green in Kentucky. She now serves on the staff of the Nashville-Davidson County Metropolitan Historic Zoning Commission. Brennan is the assistant director of the SHPO and Certified Local Government coordinator who works with property owners on the financial incentives available to historic-property owners.
The SHPO awarded funding assistance to the Wheeling, Martinsburg and Elkins local historic landmark commissions for these workshops through the National Park Service’s Certified Local Government program. The program is a preservation partnership between local, state and national governments that focuses on promoting historic preservation at the grass-roots level. CLG communities are responsible for enforcing state and local legislation for the designation and protection of historic properties. They also establish qualified historic preservation review commissions, maintain a survey and inventory system for historic properties within their jurisdictions and provide for adequate public participation in local historic preservation programs, including the process of nominating properties to the National Register of Historic Places.
The designation also helps communities qualify for grants that fund a variety of preservation activities, including architectural and archaeological surveys, National Register nominations, educational brochures, walking tours, guidelines for design review and feasibility studies of historic structures.
For more information about the CLG program or the workshops, contact Brennan at Jennifer.L.Brennan@wv.gov or 304-558-0240, ext. 156.
The West Virginia Division of Culture and History is an agency within the West Virginia Department of Education and the Arts with Kay Goodwin, Cabinet Secretary. The Division, led by Commissioner Randall Reid-Smith, brings together the past, present and future through programs and services focusing on archives and history, arts, historic preservation and museums. For more information about the Division’s programs, events and sites, visit www.wvculture.org. The Division of Culture and History is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.
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