Registering a Local Landmark
Contact your local landmark preservation commission. Larger cities, counties, or metropolitan areas typically have their own commission to designate landmarks of local historical significance. Since the procedure for registering a local landmark varies greatly depending on the historical landmark registration laws in the state and the rules established by local governments, it's best to contact the commission directly to find out the specifics. In some states, local designation is more of an honorary thing that doesn't come with many of the benefits available to locations registered as state or national historical landmarks. Most local commissions, particularly in larger cities and metropolitan areas, have their own website. You also can find information about your local commission by checking with your state historical society. Each city has its own criteria regarding which properties may be designated local historical landmarks. Typically they must be at least 30 years old and have a particular historical value or interest to the city, or be associated with individuals who have historical value to the city and its development.
Nominate your landmark. The local commission typically will have an application form that you must fill out to nominate your location for designation as a historical landmark. If you are not the owner of the property, you typically also must have permission from the owner. In smaller locations, particularly where local designation is the only honorary, there may not be a formal application. In those cases, you can send a letter or make a nomination in person at a city council meeting. Cities with formal applications typically require information such as the location of the property, the name and contact information of the owner, and the reason you're nominating the location as a historical landmark. Some cities may charge a fee to file an application. The fees typically vary in relation to the size of the property and specific structure you are applying to have designated as a historical landmark. The fee typically will be a few hundred dollars but may be more if you are not the owner of the property.
Attend the public hearing. Typically the formal review process begins with a public hearing at which anyone can testify regarding the location and whether it should be designated a historical landmark. The commission may review the application to confirm the location meets the city's criteria before approving it for a formal review process. Agency staff may visit the location and take photos or collect other evidence of the condition of the property and its historic significance. You will be notified if there will be a public hearing on your application. The notice will include the date, time, and location of the hearing. At the hearing, any member of the public can comment on the application. You may want to have family or friends attend who can testify as to the historical significance of the site you want to register as a local historical landmark.
Receive a copy of the commission's report. After the public hearing and additional evaluation of the location, the local commission typically will release a report with its recommendation on whether to designate the location a historical landmark. In some cities, this is the end of the process. After a public hearing, the commission makes a decision on whether to designate the location of a historical landmark, and that decision is final. In other cities, this is only the beginning of the process. If the city's historic commission recommends a property for landmark status, that recommendation is forwarded to other bodies such as the city council to vote on a final resolution.
Follow the voting process. Different cities and counties vary widely in terms of what happens after the commission has decided whether a location should be designated as a historical landmark. Some require additional rounds of voting by the city council, or approval by the mayor. For example, to have a property designated as a historical landmark in New York City, the commission must complete a formal review and vote to approve the designation at the public hearing. After the commission vote, the City Council has 120 days to modify or disapprove the commission's designation – however, City Council approval is not required. If the City Council doesn't act within 120 days, the designation becomes final. New York City also gives the Mayor the ability to veto a City Council vote within five days of the Council's decision. The Council then has 10 days to override the Mayor's vote with a two-thirds majority. After designation as a historical landmark, you typically will have to fill out additional forms if your city provides tax credits or other benefits to historical landmarks. These applications may come with additional fees.
Registering a State Landmark
Review your state's criteria. Each state has its own standards for whether a property qualifies for registration as a historical landmark. You typically can find your state's criteria either by going to the state's historical preservation website or by visiting the office in person. Generally, the property must have architectural or historical significance, or be associated with an individual who is of historical significance – such as the only private residence designed by a famous architect, or the birthplace of a state resident who became President of the United States. In most states the property must be at least 30 or 40 years old. However, other states such as California have no age requirement. California's designation requirements focus more on the unique quality of a property or style of architecture, and the place's impact on major events of historical significance. Some states such as Kansas have an additional stage of the application process, which requires you to first file a form with preliminary site information and receive an eligibility letter before you can proceed with your application for registration.
Complete the application. The application form requires you to identify the property you want to register as a historical landmark and the owner of that property. You also must include information as to why that property qualifies as a historical landmark. In some states, the state application requires basically the same information as a national application would require. Other states develop their own application to reflect more state-specific requirements. Some states require additional documents. Typically you can download a packet of information that will detail what must be included in the application. Most states require permission from the owner if you are not the owner of the property. In some cases, you also must file a notarized affidavit from the owner expressing his or her approval of the application. In some states, you may be required to have a nomination sponsor or hired consultant to complete the application and certify the research on which the claims of historical significance are based.
Submit your application to the appropriate state agency. Once you've completed the application and any other required documents, make a copy of them for your records and submit them to the state historical society or historic preservation commission. Typically you'll need to submit the form to the same agency from which you received the application forms. There should be an address on the form itself or included within the form's instructions. After you submit your application, it may be evaluated by staff at the agency. You may be contacted with notes or revisions to your application, or questions regarding particular claims. If more information or documentation is required, the state agency will let you know.
Attend the designation meeting. After your application is received, your state's historical society may have an initial review followed by a public or semi-public meeting to discuss the designation of the property as a historical landmark. Typically you will receive a notice letting you know of the date, time, and location of the designation hearing. You and others can attend the meeting to testify as to the property's historical significance. Individuals opposed to the designation also may be able to attend the meeting and say their piece about why the property should not be designated as a landmark to be preserved.
Follow through with registration. Each state has its own process for approving the designation of historical landmarks. As the applicant or owner of the property, you typically must attend additional meetings or fill out additional forms once the application is approved to complete your registration. For example, applications in Kansas are reviewed and ultimately approved by votes of the Kansas Sites Historic Sites Board of Review. Recommendations are presented to the Board by historic society staff or qualified professional consultants. In California, the historic commission votes on applications after the public hearing. Approved applications are forwarded to the Director of California State Parks for final approval. Once you receive notice that the application has been approved, you may have to complete additional forms to have a plaque installed or to receive tax benefits.
Registering a National Landmark
Contact your State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO). Registration of a national historical landmark begins by working with your state's preservation office to get the research materials, forms, and other information necessary to complete the process. You can get the forms in person by stopping by the SHPO office. Most states and territories also have a website where application forms, other documents, and instructions are available. Staff at your SHPO also are available to answer questions and assist you in filling out the forms you must complete to nominate a property for registration as a historical landmark. If the property is located on federal or tribal land, you must work with the nearest Federal Preservation or Tribal Preservation Office.
Evaluate the National Register criteria. Properties generally must be of the required age and integrity and have national historical significance. In most cases, the property must have had historical significance for at least 50 years. The property must be old enough to be considered historic, generally at least 50 years old, and it must look substantially the same way it looked when the historic events that give it significance occurred. Properties that achieved historic significance within the past 50 years may be eligible for designation if they are considered to be of exceptional importance. The property must be associated with people, activities, events, developments, or achievements that were important in the past. Historical significance includes architectural, engineering, or landscaping achievements, such as if a house was designed by a famous architect or the building was the first to incorporate a major structural development. Birthplaces of major historical figures typically have more significance if there is no other property associated with the person's productive life.
Complete the nomination forms. The registration form for the National Register requires you to provide significant information about the property you want registered as a historical landmark and make a case for that property's historical significance. You must establish and present reasons for the property's historical significance. You may want to attach photos or documents to support your claims, such as newspaper clippings from the time of the historical event associated with the property. Examples of completed nomination forms for approved applications are available on the National Park Service's website. You also may be able to see completed forms at your SHPO. Completed forms can give you a good example of what the National Park Service is looking for and the information necessary to get an application approved. National Register Bulletins also contain information and instructions for nominating a property for designation as a national historical landmark.
Submit your forms. To register a national historic landmark, you must first submit your forms to your state historic preservation office. The state office will review the application and send the proposed nomination to the state's National Register Review Board. After your forms are submitted, the SHPO will notify property owners and local governments and ask for public comment on the nomination. Although anybody can nominate a property for designation as a historical landmark, the nomination won't proceed unless the property owner agrees to it. The SHPO and your state's National Register Review Board will review your application materials and determine whether to recommend designation. This process takes a minimum of 90 days.
Receive notification of registration. After a review of your application is complete, the nomination will be sent to the Keeper of the National Record of Historic Places along with certifying recommendations for a final listing decision. The National Park Service will make a decision on whether to list the property in the National Register of Historic Places within 45 days after the complete nomination is received. If your property is listed on the National Register, this doesn't restrict your ownership rights in any way. You still have the right to use, transfer, or dispose of the property however you see fit. However, there may be restrictions if the property is subject to local zoning restrictions or state designation. Many cities have their own ordinances related to the preservation of historic properties.
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