For the second consecutive year, the Marion Historical Commission has been selected to receive a Survey & Planning Grant from the Massachusetts Historical Commission in its statewide 2021 grant cycle.
The matching grant of $15,000 will be matched by $15,000 of local funds allocated from 2020 Community Preservation funds. An historic preservation consultant will be hired to continue the ongoing process of inventorying all of Marion’s historic and cultural resources. This will further extend the Commission’s 2020 efforts to update and expand the existing inventory to current State standards for a comprehensive, digitized, easily-accessible database for local preservation planning and community education. The survey process also will include recommendations for nominating properties to the National Register of Historic Places, the official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation.
The Marion Historical Commission, with the Town’s adoption of MA General Laws Part I Title VII Chapter 40 Section 8D, was established in the 1990s for the primary purpose of identifying and protecting the Town’s historic resources. This includes buildings, structures, objects and sites of national, state, or local significance based on an understanding of their historic, architectural, and/or archeological importance.
The primary responsibility of the Marion Historical Commission is to coordinate all community-wide historic preservation planning on behalf of the Town. This includes educating the public about the identification of historic resources and the importance of preserving and protecting such resources. The Commission also serves as a public advocate to advise the Select Board and other local and state agencies regarding matters of preservation, protection and redevelopment of historic buildings, structures and sites which may be under consideration by said boards.
A Request for Qualifications was posted in July and a consultant will be selected in the coming weeks. The Scope of Work will include continued inventory in the Marion Village area, Water Street area, Nye’s Corner area, and adjacent streets. Work is expected to begin in September 2021, with completion by July 2022.