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Save Me the Frustration!
How Project Managers and the State Historical Fund May Help You Save Your Sacred Place
Submitted by: Rachel Simpson, Technical Advisor, State Historical Fund

If the congregation is the soul of the community, then the church building is the body for that soul. How can we adequately enrich the soul without preserving the body? - anonymous

Those of us who own historic properties and/or have worked in the non-profit world know that when it comes to preservation of our historic resources, the projects often become "do-it-yourself" specials. With limited financial resources and so much to do in so little time, we frequently have to act as our own project managers, historic preservation specialists, fund-raisers, sub-contractors, bookkeepers, and cheerleaders!

Certainly those who help with the daunting task of managing a sacred place know the hours of sacrifice it takes to tend to both the needs of the congregation as well as the needs of the building that holds that congregation. But so many times meeting the great needs of the congregation may mean sacrificing the needs of the building, or at least deferring them to a later time (which can often mean even greater costs over the long-term). Until, that is, the needs of the building evolve into a large-scale historic preservation project. That project may be too expensive for the congregation to pay for on its own, so you may need the grant assistance of the Colorado Historical Society's State Historical Fund (SHF).

Though, if you are not an historic preservation professional, if you have other demands on your time (like a full-time job or a congregation to tend) or if you haven't managed grants, the whole project may seem overwhelming. To save you time, frustration, and cost, it is often a better investment to hire a project manager. But how, with such limited financial resources, would one be able to hire a professional project manager, and what would they do for you?

The good news is: Colorado Historical Society's State Historical Fund (SHF) is happy to help you pay to hire a project manager if it will help you complete your SHF grant-funded project successfully. Project managers may be architects, structural engineers, non-profit historic preservation grant managers or other professionals who have experience with historic preservation projects. They should know all of the historic preservation standards by which any SHF-funded project MUST be managed, and they can help save you time, frustration, and they may possibly save you from making costly mistakes. A project manager can make suggestions about preservation treatments (the technical stuff), they may be able to handle the bidding process to subcontractors, and they may be able to help you through the contracts process, and to compile progress reports and financial reports as your project progresses.

In fact, in the SHF general grant application the SHF asks for a list of "key staff." If the key staff involved with the project have little experience managing such projects, asking to help hire a project manager may actually help make a grant application more likely to be funded. Asking for that kind of help when the sacred place simply does not have access to those professional and specialized resources on its own demonstrates to the SHF the church's sense of responsibility and commitment to its historic resource.

Established only a decade ago, the State Historical Fund has grown to be the largest fund of its type in the nation. Grant funds are available through the SHF to foster heritage preservation through tangible and highly visible projects for direct and demonstrable public benefit. In fiscal year 2000-2001, the SHF awarded nearly $18.2 million to 265 applicants, bringing the total number of projects funded to 1,891 and the total amount awarded to nearly $95 million. In addition, over $70 million in private matching funds contributed to these projects.

Sacred Landmarks Preservation can guide sacred places in finding a qualified preservation project manager, architect, or contractor. Sacred Landmarks Preservation can also assist with preparing grants for the State Historical Fund. Please call Nicole Hernandez the Sacred Landmarks Preservation program coordinator for more information at 303-534-5288 x 16.