Following two years of surveying and evaluating properties, researching their histories and determining significance, Buchanan’s City Manager William Marx announced Thursday that the majority of the work is now complete.
The nomination to the National Register of Historic Places is scheduled to go before the Michigan State Historic Preservation Review Board at its Sept. 16 meeting. If the State Review Board approves, the nomination then moves to the National Park Service for its consideration. Pam O’Connor, Buchanan’s preservation consultant, will report to the Buchanan City Commission at its Monday meeting to provide a complete update and answer questions.
The completed residential district covers nearly 166 acres on the north, west and southwest sides of downtown, and includes 701 buildings, sites, structures and objects. Property types include houses, barns and garages, several sacred and commercial properties and other resources, including historic carriage steps, a section of Pears Millrace and street stairs. Twenty-three distinct architectural styles are represented within the proposed district, as well as a variety of other, simpler building forms dating from the 1840s to the early-1960s.
O’Connor, who is also a Michigan adviser to the National Trust for Historic Places, said Thursday: “This nomination, if approved, will create one of the largest per-capita National Register Historic Districts in the state of Michigan, and Buchanan well-deserves this recognition. As towns of all sizes struggle to survive in a volatile, unpredictable economic environment — historic district designation — which supports a strong sense of place and helps build local economies, is one of the wisest fiscal decisions a community can make, and Buchanan is clearly a leader in southwest Michigan.”
This new nomination follows Buchanan’s successful efforts to designate its historic downtown, listed on the National Register of Historic Places in September 2009.