Illinois Preservation Plan

Number of Pages:  26
Approval Date:  December 28, 2005
Planning Cycle:  5 years

Contact Information:

Theodore Hild, Deputy SHPO
Illinois Historic Preservation Agency
1 Old State Capitol Plaza
Springfield, Illinois 62701-1507
(217) 785-4993; fax (217) 524-7525
E-mail:  ted_hild@ihpa.state.il.us
Website:  www.illinoishistory.gov/PS/preservationplan.pdf

Mission/Vision Statement:
The [Plan's] goals and objectives lead to a vision in which historic preservation is commonly accepted as a significant means for making better communities and better citizens. It is a vision wherein preservation is used to manage change, wherein the basis for revitalization is the adaptation of resources from the past for modern uses, wherein all citizens of the state, regardless of their heritage, can derive some personal and collective identity from the public patrimony, wherein we can gain an understanding of history and how we developed as a civilization, wherein the economic consequences of preservation in such areas as employment, tourism or public revenue are always assumed to be beneficial until proven otherwise. It is a vision in which all who ever think about the future of their communities unhesitatingly and as a matter of course take the principles and practices of historic preservation into account.

Table of Contents:

1. Introduction: The Comprehensive Plan and Its Context
2. Historical Context of the Resources
3. The Structure of Historic Preservation in Illinois
4. Cultural Resources in Illinois
5. The Resource Environment
6. Threats to Resources
7. Goals and Objectives
8. Planning Process
9. Planning Cycle
10. Bibliography

PLAN DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES
Public Participation Strategies:

• Historic Preservation Division regular interaction with state and federal agencies, preservation partners, and public stakeholders in historic preservation;
• Questionnaire distributed to 4000+ through the SHPO's Historic Illinois magazine;
• Draft Plan circulated for public review, and its availability for review was announced through the Historic Illinois magazine and posted on the SHPO's web site.

HISTORIC AND CULTURAL RESOURCES
Historic resources; heritage; public patrimony; cultural resources; historic buildings and structures; archaeological sites; historic, prehistoric, and architectural resources; Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site; historical archaeological resources associated with late 17th-century exploration, such as missions and outposts of the French colonial empire, with 18th-century British forts, with late 18th- and early 19th-century Euroamerican settlement; underwater archaeological resources in Lake Michigan, the Illinois and Michigan Canal, and the Mississippi, Ohio, Illinois, Wabash, and Kaskaskia Rivers; resources associated with establishment and growth of urban centers, such as Chicago; resources associated with ethnic immigrants, such as Germans, Irish, Swedes, Polish, Austrian, Italian, Balkans, Latin America, Africa, and Asia; resources associated with Abraham Lincoln; architectural heritage; resources associated with national, state or local history; prehistoric and historic Native American resources; historic districts and neighborhoods; rural farmsteads; railroads; rural landscapes; schools, service stations, stores, and local government buildings; residential and commercial structures; historic suburbs.

ISSUES, THREATS, & OPPORTUNITIES

• Economic growth and decline both affect preservation of historic properties;
• Changing demography poses preservation challenges;
• Decrease in number of farmers results in abandonment and demolition of farms, schools, service stations, stores, and local government buildings;
• Agricultural practices damage archaeological resources, such as prehistoric mounds;
• Small towns deteriorate and are abandoned as a result of population shifts to urban areas;
• Coal strip mining threatens historic and prehistoric resources;
• Growth in suburban areas (sprawl) obliterates much of the early land use pattern adjacent to cities and towns;
• Sprawl also affects suburban communities when competition from big shopping malls draws customers away from suburban centers;
• Increasing number of "tear downs" in older suburbs;
• Central commercial urban cores experience out-migration of retailing to edges of cities where commercial strips, shopping malls and "big-box" stores draw customers;
• Urban neighborhoods experience disinvestment and deterioration;
• Many programs for housing, urban development, rural development and land management are not sympathetic to preservation;
• Many regulatory programs dealing with accessibility, lead paint and asbestos abatement, underground fuel tanks, and other environmental hazards pose difficulties for the retention of historic material;
• Lack of awareness of preservation principles and practices lead to inappropriate treatment, neglect, and degradation of historic properties.

1. Survey and create an inventory of all the properties in the state which may possess historic, architectural or archaeological significance.
2. Evaluate and designate properties possessing historical, architectural and archaeological significance.
3. Protect and preserve historically, architecturally and archaeologically significant properties occurring individually and in districts and complexes.
4. Educate citizens in the practices and principles of historic preservation.
5. Create an environment within Illinois in which the ideals of preservation and its related strategies are considered as a matter of course by all citizens.

1. Survey all significant historic properties.
   • Support community surveys;
   • Cooperate with other agencies in the planning process to identify resources;
   • Complete surveys of rural areas.
2. Evaluate and designate historic properties.
   • Administer the National Register;
   • Encourage nominations by CLGs;
   • Continue statewide National Register workshops.
3. Protect and preserve significant properties.
   • Consider effects of government actions on historic properties;
   • Encourage cooperation among government agencies, individuals, preservation advocacy organizations, and other interest groups;
   • Monitor landmarks to avoid adverse effects;
   • Establish and administer local government preservation programs;
   • Encourage landmark owners to seek benefits;
   • Support preservation advocacy groups and activities.
4. Educate citizens in preservation.
   • Support preservation groups;
   • Encourage use of preservation in all levels of planning;
   • Improve public access to preservation information;
   • Hold workshops and conferences;
   • Promote the economic and social benefits of preservation.
5. Create a preservation environment considered routine by citizens.
   • Increase awareness and use of preservation strategies;
   • Educate children about importance of preservation;
   • Promote public access to preservation information.