Among the 20 locations added to the New York State Register of Historic Places and in contention for the national register, is a rather large one, the McKinley Parkway Historic District. That district comprises a large chunk of South Buffalo, and comes with economic incentives.
The McKinley Parkway Historic District is now the largest area to receive that designation in New York. It covers more than 5,000 buildings east of South Park Avenue and west of Cazenovia Park. The development of the South Buffalo community was unique, drawing in Irish immigrants who were going to work in the city’s steel and grain industries in the late-1800s.
Preservation Buffalo Niagara Executive Director Bernice Radle says with that, came focused community and architectural development.
“It's beautiful, it's historic. The buildings there are very charming, very beautiful and very well taken care of," said Radle. "Of course, because South Buffalo folks are known for taking care of their homes. Very much so and so so much of the historic integrity is intact.”
Those include churches, cultural centers, storefronts and homes. While homeowners may be concerned the historic designation comes with restrictive rules around what work can be done to homes, Radle said that won’t be happening. What it does mean is historic tax credits are available to those looking to make improvements to their homes, if period correct.
“Will I have to abide by paint colors? No, not at all," said Radle, explaining the designation is more of an incentive. "This is a national-level historic district, meaning what you get is, if you, let's say, you replace your roof, you can get the 20% homeowner historic tax credit. That 20% goes as a tax credit that can be pulled on your taxes and go year after year until you use it up. And it's a really great way for people to save some money off of their home improvements, whether they're repairs, renovations, renovating a kitchen.”
Preservation Buffalo Niagara is hosting workshops for homeowners to learn more about the tax incentives, and what the historic designation means for the community. Those will be hosted virtually on Zoom, this coming Tuesday.
