SUPPORT THE HISTORIC PRESERVATION INCENTIVE
by Aaron Marcavich Sponsor of Article 55
When I was asked to write a brief article about my proposal for a tax incentive for historic building restoration at Town Meeting, I informed the staff of The Nantucket Independent that I would not be contradicting the negative decision of the Finance Committee. The reasons for doing this were threefold, each of which speak directly to the issues of local politics and historic preservation.

The first issue is overcoming the "negative" recommendation of the Finance Committee. You have to fight for the life of your article to get it through the system when it gets labeled with a negative recommendation. In my case, the article was labeled negative when Town Counsel indicated that it would need state legislature approval. He was right in some ways, wrong in others.

This type of tax incentive has legislative approval (MGL 59, Subsection 5J); however, the way I wrote the local enabling bylaw had some errors - - most notably the change of time in which the abatement occurs - which would have made it invalid. I could have amended the article on Town Meeting floor. Yet, anyone who has been to Town Meeting knows how muddled an article can become when amended on Town Meeting floor. This was the first reason for becoming hesitant about moving forward. Local politics has a way of morphing into something you never expected.

Next, after some discussion with the Massachusetts Historical Commission, I felt that this solution to saving historic buildings was not going to be warranted. The towns of Bedford, Chelmsford, Foxborough, Ludlow, and Wellfleet are the only five to have adopted this bylaw.

Christopher Skelly, the Director of Local Government Programs for MHC, wrote "While it was hoped that this bylaw would stimulate additional homeowners to rehabilitate their property, I am not aware of any homeowners that have taken advantage of this phased assessment increase. I suspect that the property tax savings are just too small." With this in mind, I felt that the state solution was not advantageous to Nantucket. While our state legislature has shown a willingness to support historic preservation, this small gesture does not actually solve the problems of saving historic buildings and landscapes.

Finally, with my own life shifting from the HDC to the Nantucket Housing Office, I knew that I would not have the time to devote to the fight - the kind of time I knew would be necessary to make it right. I have instead focused on my work with the Historical Commission, the Cemetery Commission, and the South Church Preservation Fund. These local based boards and nonprofits feed my need to provide historic preservation solutions for Nantucket. Also, I have learned that the way to "fix" historic preservation is not always through legislation. Local advocacy and education can help stem the tide by showing those doing preservation the wrong way the right methods.

Preservation is not easy. It is not often sexy or interesting. It takes a good deal of advocacy and teaching those who do not understand the basic philosophical elements. It takes greasing the wheels of politics. And, it takes strong support from those in high political places. While this tax incentive may not have been the right choice, I encourage the Board of Selectmen and town officials to take a stand on historic preservation. Otherwise we will continue to have a Nantucket that stopped being concerned about historic preservation in 1966. Nantucket's historic buildings and landscapes deserve better than

being left behind. I