Request for Comments on Draft ACHP Policy Statement on Housing and Historic Preservation

This advocacy alert is reposted from The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation.

America is suffering from a massive shortage of available housing units, and the crisis is particularly acute regarding affordable housing. Reusing existing buildings is integral to addressing this critical problem, and - since about 40 percent of America’s buildings are at least 50 years old - rehabilitating historic housing and adapting historic buildings not originally built for housing is essential. The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation is developing a policy statement on housing and historic preservation to provide expert advice to a wide range of stakeholders on the role that historic preservation can play in alleviating the housing crisis.

A draft of the policy statement on housing and historic preservation is available for public comment. Comments must be submitted in writing by 5 p.m. on November 11, 2023, by emailing housing@achp.gov. Comments received will be considered as the draft policy statement is finalized. (All comments are subject to the Freedom of Information Act and/or may be made public.)

The draft policy statement provides advice to all levels of government, community groups, nonprofit organizations, developers, and others in the private sector regarding the importance of: gathering information relating to historic preservation and housing; reusing historic buildings; accelerating project permitting and environmental review; education; and collaboration.

The draft policy statement builds upon and incorporates key principles of the ACHP’s 2007 Affordable Housing and Historic Preservation Policy Statement, which focuses principally on review of affordable housing projects under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act. Portions of the 2007 policy statement appear (with revisions) in Policy Principle #9 of the current draft.