CHRISTINE ROBINSON Star-Tribune staff writer | Posted: Sunday, February 3, 2008 12:00 am
Is your building more than 50 years old?
Does it have some historic or economic value?
If you answered yes, you may be able to add your building to the growing list of Casper sites on the National Register of Historic Places.
It's more of an honor than a list of protected sites. You can still sell the building, tear it down or renovate in any way you want, but you do get a 10 percent federal tax credit if you renovate, and federal money can't be used for demolition.
There are 19 places in Casper currently on the list, and two more that are in the process. The Historic Preservation Commission announced recently that five more Casper buildings are up for consideration.
Each of the buildings are in the Old Yellowstone District, an area between downtown and Poplar Street.
There are four main categories to qualify:
It needs to have an association with events that made a significant contribution to local, state or national history.
It needs to have an association with lives from that period of time.
It needs to have an association that includes distinctive characteristics of a type, period or method of construction.
It could yield or likely to yield information to the history of our prehistory.
Peggy Brooker, Casper's Historic Preservation Commission coordinator, said the five additional buildings are eligible because of their association with the economic development of Casper, as well as their age.
There are many reasons to preserve older buildings, Brooker said one of the most important is to provide a community with a "sense of place."
"It provides you with some connection to your past," Brooker said. "And that is important."
Simply because the buildings are eligible to be listed doesn't guarantee them a spot. Commission member Connie Bryant spent roughly two years on an application for Grant Street Grocery. Once the application is submitted, it goes to a national "keeper" to accept or reject.
Contact city reporter Christine Robinson at (307) 266-0639 or christine.robinson@trib.com