The Plan for this community also includes this comment about the value of preservation: “Commitment to preservation may be one of the most effective acts of fiscal responsibility governmental entities can undertake. Conservation of buildings, neighborhoods, and sites of historic and aesthetic value is one of the best tools for recovering the worth of past investments while fueling new economic activity.”
Without historic tax credits to assist developers, such a preservation plan for historic structures would merely be a detailed study of wishful thinking. Consider that when historic tax credits were eliminated in 1986, historic rehabilitations in Missouri dropped by 96%!
The website for Grain Valley, Missouri includes this quotation: “The City of Grain Valley encourages eligible properties to seek listing on the National Register of Historic Places and will support any project that builds on the historic character of applicable buildings rather than detracting from them.”
(http://www.cityofgrainvalley.org/ed_Incentive_Utilization_Guidelines.pdf)
The website for Blue Springs, Missouri references Historic Tax Credits as a tool to assist developers who invest in this community. Blue Springs has a Historic Preservation Commission to accomplish the following: “…to protect and enhance the City’s architectural, cultural and social history, safeguard that heritage and promote the use of historic districts or landmarks as educational and cultural resources for the community.”
(http://www.bluespringsgov.com/City%20Council/boards_and_commissions.htm)
These three communities vary in size and approach to planning and economic development, but each recognizes historic preservation as a key component.