The State Historical Fund, or SHF, has awarded nearly $9 million total in grants for preservation projects all over the state. KRCC’s Eliza Densmore reports.
The Colorado Springs Pioneers Museum, the Fine Arts Center, and the Canon City Carnegie Library are among the southern Colorado structures that recently received funds.
Steve Turner, Deputy State Historic Preservation Officer, says often the buildings chosen for the grants are among the most loved places in a community. "They also are frequently really the civic heart of a community," Turner said.
Turner also says the awards help keep those vital locations current.
"Historic buildings can be used for a wide variety of things," said Turner. "And so, when people are looking at a building, if it’s a vacant or abandoned building, they should never look at it just as what it was built for but there are any kinds of activities that we need in contemporary society that can be put into these buildings."
The History Colorado State Historical Fund grants money to organizations including libraries, historic mining sites, and historic properties damaged by natural disasters.
The SHF has funded around 4,000 projects since 1993.
