On January 22, 2025, the County Commissioners approved the following changes to the Morris County Historic Preservation Program Rules:
(Delete 5.6.4 “Eligible Properties”)
4. Any property that is currently used for religious purposes or functions is ineligible for Historic Preservation grant funding.
(Amend 5.8 “Eligible Activities” by adding new section 8)
8. Religious institutions – eligible activities include Historic Structure Reports, Preservation Plans, and Assessment Reports; and the preparation of construction documents and completion of construction activities for the exterior building elements, and the building’s structural and MEP systems (mechanical, electrical and plumbing)
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Eligible applicants to the HP program are municipalities, the county, and Charitable Conservancy. To qualify as an eligible applicant for the HP program, religious institutions must meet the definition of a Charitable Conservancy, a 501(c)(3) entity whose purposes include the historic preservation of historic properties (Morris County Preservation Trust Fund Rules, Section 2 Definitions – Charitable Conservancy). Charitable conservancies whose purposes do not currently include historic preservation can qualify by amending their IRS mission statement / purpose / bylaws to include historic preservation of their historic properties.
Please note we are waiving the requirement for paper submission for the 2025 grant applications. If you have Preservation Plans and/or drawings/specs which have not been reviewed previously by the County Consultant, please submit them digitally to this office (E-mail address below) and our consultant by March 28, 2025 (Contact Program Coordinator for the consultant's E-mail address).
We will provide a link through which all applicants can submit the digital application materials, including a 10-minute video for sites that have not prepared one before. Please note the time of receipt of your digital application will be considered the official time of submission of your application.