Where This Year’s State Historic And Conservation Grant Money Is Going

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Colonial Theatre project in downtown Laconia snagged the biggest grant

Twenty-three conservation and historic preservation projects will be sharing just north of $1 million in state grants courtesy of New Hampshire’s Land and Community Heritage Investment Program (LCHIP).  Fourteen historic structures and more than 2,800 acres of land ultimately qualified for funding.

Grant awards ranged from $150,000 toward the $5 million project to buy and restore the Colonial Theatre in Laconia to $4,000 to renovate the Stack Room in the Silsby Library in Acworth.  In a media release, the LCHIP Board of Directors estimated:

“These projects will support more than 120 jobs and contribute over $3.7 million to the employment economy of the state…

The [most recent round of] LCHIP grants of $1,158,308 have attracted about $13.5 million in total project value.”

But, as NHPR’s Jon Greenberg reports, these latest awards might be a “last hurrah” for LCHIP.

“This is the last year LCHIP has funding.  State budget writers eliminated its money for the next two years.  Taylor says board members are looking for ways to keep the program going and in 2013, they will go back and ask lawmakers to reconsider.”