Historic designation and the rebuilding of neighborhoods: new evidence of the value of an old policy tool

Abstract

Rebuilding central cities has focused on big-ticket items such as entertainment complexes and neighborhood-based initiatives. Historic preservation as one neighborhood-based strategy seeks to capitalize on intact collections of historic architecture and the pedestrian-friendly character of these pre-automobile neighborhoods to elevate property values and enhance the tax bases of central cities. While a majority of past studies indicate historic designation does enhance property values, some found no or negative impacts. By quantitatively assessing the impact of local historic district designations on the enhancement of residential property values, this paper contributes to the literature on the relationship between historic preservation and urban revitalization. The multi-city analysis focuses on preservation’s impacts on residential property values and the resulting positive and negative outcomes from district designation.