For more than 40 years, Colorado Preservation Inc. (CPI) has been a driving force for preservation across the state.
As Colorado’s statewide nonprofit historic preservation organization, CPI provides communities and property owners the expertise and technical assistance to reinvest in their historic resources.
As part of its mission, CPI educates the public about the value of historic places and the economic and community benefits of preservation.
A recent federal investment will expand CPI’s statewide impact and bring significant new funding to Colorado. CPI has been awarded a $750,000 Paul Bruhn Historic Revitalization Grant from the National Park Service (NPS) to launch and administer a new round of rural revitalization grants statewide.
“The results of CPI’s first Rural Revitalization Subgrant Program demonstrated both the demand for this funding and its impact in rural Colorado,” said Jennifer Orrigo Charles, executive director of CPI. “CPI pursued a second Paul Bruhn award to continue that investment at a time when funding for historic properties is increasingly limited. Rural communities remain a priority, as preservation can be a catalyst for economic investment and downtown revitalization.”
CPI launched its first Rural Revitalization Subgrant Program in 2023, awarding $611,315 to eight projects statewide. The grants leveraged more than $3 million in owner investment, nearly five nonfederal dollars for every federal dollar awarded, and generated an estimated 5,020 hours of employment. Awards supported projects in Central City, Paonia, Granite, Hayden, San Luis, Saguache and Steamboat Springs. The funding supported a community gathering and event space at the Hayden Granary, a community arts center at the historic Curtis Hardware building in Paonia, a heritage center in a WPA era building in San Luis, and a Veterans Center serving veterans and local organizations in Steamboat Springs.
CPI’s second round of funding will build on the first program’s results and bring new investment to communities statewide. CPI anticipates opening applications in May for Historic Preservation Month. Priority will be given to projects that address critical building needs and strengthen rural communities.
This project is being supported in part by a Historic Preservation Fund grant administered by the NPS, Department of the Interior.
>