Preservation Pays.

That is the conclusion of an economic study, “Prosperity through Preservation,” released in January 2008 by the Department of Historic Resources. Conducted by Virginia Commonwealth University’s Center for Public Policy, in partnership with DHR, the study finds that Virginia’s state rehabilitation tax credit program created nearly $1.6 billion in economic impact in the Commonwealth and supported just under 11,000 jobs since 1997. The study determined that from 1997 through June 2007 rehabilitation state tax credit incentives spurred private investment of nearly $1.5 billion spent restoring more than 1,200 landmark buildings throughout Virginia. Significantly, VCU’s analysis, based on a survey of sponsors of rehabilitation projects, determined that of the nearly $1.5 billion investment, a full $952 million was tied directly to projects for which the state tax credits were identified as an essential driving force. In other words, without the rehabilitation state tax credit program, the projects would never have been undertaken. Read the summary, Prosperity through Preservation.