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|  | Mackinac Island’s Icy Harbor, photo courtesy of Rick Neumann
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Mackinac Island is waiting for spring ... and for you!
The MHPN’s 43rd Annual Statewide Preservation Conference is coming right up on Thursday, May 11, through Saturday morning, May 13. We’re headquartered at the historic Mission Point Resort located on the Island’s “Sunrise Side.” Our theme is “A Fragile Balance – How Heritage Tourism Balances Profitability and Authenticity.”
It was in May, 2007, that we last were on Mackinac Island. The conference was our first to focus on historic preservation’s role in tourism. “Heritage Tourism” was exciting because – while not new – it was beginning to reveal its potential to Michigan’s preservation community. Now 16 years later, the value of heritage tourism to Michigan’s economy is proven. With the celebration of our cultural resources, however, we see that with popularity come the pressures of over-development and wear-and-tear.
The theme has inspired great sessions! We’ll learn about the balancing of heritage management and tourism at Michigan’s oldest lighthouse, the Fort Gratiot Light Station (1829) in Port Huron. We’ll have a session about how the Ossian Sweet House, Sojourner Truth Homes Public Housing Complex, and Second Baptist Church are spurring a different kind of heritage tourism in Detroit. We’ll consider how our host community maintains the authenticity of a late-nineteenth-century resort community and what challenges they face doing so.
No matter which community is yours, we know you have precious architectural and archaeological survivors from your past that are points of pride for residents. More and more, they also are what make your community a distinctive destination for visitors.
As the conference approaches, we’ll say more about the 31 sessions and tours providing information you can use. Registration opens the last week of February
See you on Mackinac Island!
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IMPORTANT UPDATE ABOUT
ADVOCACY DAY 2023!
We are rescheduling the February date for this year’s Advocacy Day in favor of a date in April. Our Legislators will be further along with their agenda of initiatives, some of which will affect historic preservation activities.
A date, details, and a registration portal will be made available as soon as possible.
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Certified Local Governments (CLG) Updates and Grant Deadlines
Upcoming Grant Deadlines:
2023 Applications for Michigan State Historic Preservation Tax Credit (Residential Only) Now Being Accepted
Applications for the residential portion of the Michigan State Historic Preservation Tax Credit are now being accepted for the 2023 round. A property must be listed in the National Register of Historic Places, the State Register of Historic Sites, or be contributing to a local historic district. Credit reservations are awarded on a first-come, first-serve basis.
February 24: National Trust for Historic Preservation/Partners for Sacred Places, National Fund for Sacred Places. The National Fund offers matching grants to rehabilitation work on historic houses of worship. Letters of intent for the 2023 National Fund for Sacred Places will open in January and be accepted until February 24. For more information click here., March 1: Michigan Arts and Culture Council, Community Partners Grant. The Community Partners grant is a competitive grant program that exists to strengthen communities by encouraging them to work collaboratively with artists and culture bearers to explore cultural traditions/heritage and share in the creative process of arts and culture. For more information click here.
March 23: Michigan Humanities Grants: Humanities Grants emphasize collaboration among cultural, educational and community-based organizations and institutions in order to serve Michigan’s people with public humanities programming. More information is available at the Michigan Humanities program website.
March 31: Keweenaw National Historical Park Advisory Commission, Keweenaw Heritage Grants. The Keweenaw NHP Advisory Commission is offering grants to owners and operators of historic properties and providers of history programs in support of projects that further the preservation and interpretation of the Keweenaw Peninsula. For more information, click here.
April 1: Michigan Architectural Foundation, Education Awareness Grants. MAF annually awards education grants for projects benefiting students in Michigan, with the goal to promote awareness and education of K-12 students as advocates of architecture and its benefits to society. More information is available here.
May 4: Michigan Humanities, Great Michigan Stories Grants. Michigan Humanities is offering grants for projects highlighting untold stories in Michigan history, shedding light on underrepresented populations and communities in the state. More information is available here.
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Chris Fraleigh Departs MHPNFollowing the passing of his mother in January 2023, Chris Fraleigh decided that he needed to be more available to his 95-year-old father. As a result, he has resigned as MHPN Executive Director. In submitting his resignation, Chris wrote " This position has been such a great opportunity for me to grow and learn. I have thoroughly enjoyed working with you and see the passion in all that each of you do for the preservation movement in Michigan." Janet Kreger, Board President, responded to the news saying, “The MHPN benefitted from Chris’s work, and we wish him well in what he decides to do next.”
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Upcoming MHPN Workshops
MHPN's monthly webinars are free and open to everyone to register. Miss the live event? Recordings on our YouTube channel.
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Preservation Calendar
April 2023: MHPN's Advocacy Day, Lansing
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