Michigan Receives Historic Preservation Funds to Support Rural Communities

LANSING, Mich. – The Michigan State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) of the Michigan Strategic Fund has been awarded a $750,000 grant from the Historic Preservation Fund’s FY2024 Paul Bruhn Historic Revitalization Grants Program administered by the National Park Service (NPS), the Michigan Economic Development Corporation announced today.

Michigan’s $750,000 grant will be used to fund the Rural Heritage Partnership Program, through which the SHPO will provide funding to eligible applicants to complete repairs and improvements to qualified historic buildings in small, rural communities statewide. The goal of the program is to not only address immediate needs in these areas but also to promote long-term strategies that convey the importance of investing in our heritage assets as a meaningful component of economic development and community identity. Through the program, the SHPO also seeks to strengthen its assistance and support to the state’s rural areas, which is an ongoing goal of the office. 

“Historic preservation helps us build a stronger Michigan by preserving the places and stories that define who we are,” said Governor Whitmer. “This National Park Service Grant Funding will help preserve and repair historic buildings in rural communities statewide, ensuring we honor our past while creating vibrant spaces where people want to live, work, and invest. Let’s keep working together to support good-paying jobs, grow local economies, foster pride in our communities, and invest in people, places, and projects so that everyone can ‘make it’ in Michigan.” 

“The heart of rural communities across Michigan can be found in their historic downtowns and established commercial corridors,” said Michigan’s State Historic Preservation Officer Ryan M. Schumaker. “These areas not only provide residents and visitors with a tangible link to the history of these places, but they also serve as the life blood of the local economy. Through the SHPO’s Statewide Preservation Plan public engagement process, we consistently heard about the need for support from rural communities who want to preserve their unique character. With this National Park Service grant funding, the Rural Heritage Partnership Program will back those local preservation efforts and leverage them as a catalyst for economic development.”

The Rural Heritage Partnership Program is anticipated to open applications in spring 2026, with full program guidelines available this winter. Eligible applicants are anticipated to include local units of government, non-profit organizations and public entities, who may also partner with private owners. Eligible properties will include commercial, industrial, civic, mixed-use and community-oriented properties in small, rural communities statewide that have a population of 25,000 or fewer persons. Properties must be listed in the National Register of Historic Places either individually or as part of a historic district. Interested parties can sign up for email updates from the SHPO here.

The SHPO’s grant is one of 10 that was awarded by the NPS this year to support the preservation of historic buildings in rural communities across the country through the Paul Bruhn Historic Revitalization Grant Program. Created in 2018, the program is named in honor of the late preservation leader Paul Bruhn, executive director of the Preservation Trust of Vermont for nearly 40 years and provides funding to State and Tribal Historic Preservation Offices, Certified Local Governments, special district governments and nonprofits to create subgrant programs supporting historic preservation projects in rural communities. This is Michigan’s second award under the Paul Bruhn program, the first of which was received in 2021 and provided funding for the Resilient Lakeshore Heritage Program, which supported historic preservation projects in communities along the Great Lakes. 

About the Michigan State Historic Preservation Office

Focused on the historic preservation of culturally or archaeologically significant sites throughout the state, Michigan's State Historic Preservation Office’s main function is to provide technical assistance to local communities and property owners in their efforts to identify, evaluate, designate, interpret and celebrate Michigan’s historic above- and below-ground resources. SHPO also administers an incentives program that includes state and federal tax credits and pass-through grants available to certified local governments.

To learn more about the State Historic Preservation Office, visit https://www.miplace.org/historic-preservation/.

About Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC)

The Michigan Economic Development Corporation is the state’s marketing arm and lead advocate for business development, job awareness and community development with the focus on growing Michigan’s economy. For more information on the MEDC and our initiatives, visit www.MichiganBusiness.org. For Pure Michigan® tourism information, your trip begins at www.michigan.org. Join the conversation on: Facebook Instagram LinkedIn, and Twitter.