Downtown Could Be Part of National Register of Historic Places

may one day find itself on an exclusive lists of towns whose downtown districts are part of the National Register of Historical Places.

Only 14 towns in Illinois have such a distinction, including Galena, Long Grove and Geneva. Plainfield could be No. 15, with the assistance of a state grant-funded expert who will help write the application, Historic Preservation Commission Chairman Mike Bortel said Wednesday.

If successful, not only will the village have the national designation, all of the businesses in the district will be eligible for tax credits of up to 20 percent of the cost of any exterior work they do to their buildings, he said.  

The Illinois Historic Preservation Agency grant to pay for the application writer was awarded to the village in late December, village Planner Michael Garrigan said. It will cover 70 percent of the estimated $22,500 fee, with the village responsible for the remaining 30 percent.

"The state is very selective (in who gets these grants); there's only so much money available," Garrigan said.

"This is a great opportunity to be able to do this application. ... Based on the information I have, I think we have a very good change of getting the national application approved."

Leif Hendricksen, a member of the Historic Preservation Commission, said the idea to seek the grant came from Bortel, who did the work needed to apply for it.

"He's tireless. He's the one who deserves the credit," Hendricksen said. "This is a real plus for our community."

Bortel said the real coup, in his mind, was getting the Plainfield Village Board to in September, a designation that prevents buildings in the district from being substantially altered or torn down without village approval.

Should Plainfield's downtown be added to the National Register, it would be "icing on the cake," he said.  

Bortel said he was encouraged to apply for the grant by officials with the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency, who were instrumental in helping the historic commission educate the public about the benefits of creating a downtown historic district.

"I thought, 'Well, why not try it,'" he said. "I put together some ideas, called a number of people who did this, like Oak Park, Illinois. They sent me a template on how they did it."

The next step will be to seek bids and award a contract to do the work needed for the national application. The preservation commission is to meet tonight to begin the process, with a deadline of having the application completed by July 31, 2013, and submitted to the state by Aug. 30, 2013.