Preserve NY Arts + Culture: Support for Arts-Based Community Preservation Projects

Preserve NY Arts + Culture: Support for Arts-Based Community Preservation Projects is sponsored by Preservation League of NYS. Supports 501(c)(3) arts and cultural organizations in New York for cultural resources surveys or historic district nominations with a required arts component for community engagement. Prioritizes projects serving underrepresented communities including Latino/Hispanic.

Support for Arts-Based Community Preservation Projects — Preservation League of NYS Preservation Opportunity Fund Support for Arts-Based Community Preservation Projects Support for Pre-Construction Studies Northeast Heritage Economy Program Technical Assistance Grants Artist-led Community Engagement Preservation Professionals Digital Guide Resiliency & Disaster Planning in Historic Preservation Future of Preservation Webinar Series Northeast Regional Initiative for the Preservation Trades Pillar of New York Awards Preserve NY Arts + Culture: Support for Arts-Based Community Preservation Projects Preserve NY Arts + Culture: Support for Arts-Based Community Preservation Projects (formerly Preserve New York [PNY]), is a regrant partnership of the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) and the Preservation League of NYS made possible with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature, with additional support provided by the Maurice D.

Hinchey Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area for projects in the Hudson River Valley Greenway. Support for Arts-Based Community Preservation Projects helps fund cultural resource surveys or historic district nominations.

By documenting historic resources and their context, these projects help communities plan for the future, tell a more complete and inclusive history, identify opportunities for investment, and foster arts and culture activities in historic places.

NEW for 2026 : Projects must have an arts component; in addition to hiring a preservation consultant to complete a survey or historic district, applicants will also hire a NYS-based artist to lead community engagement that responds to and/or engages with the survey/historic district work.

The goals of the program are to: Document New York’s designed built environment and cultural heritage so that they may inform local planning and revitalization efforts and foster arts/cultural activities. Build stronger relationships between preservation and creative arts. Utilize the arts to increase public engagement with the designed built environment and its history.

Pre-applications are now closed. Full application deadline: September 30, 2026 Award announcements: December, 2026 501(c)(3) arts/culture organizations receive priority consideration; other 501(c)(3) organizations and municipalities are eligible to apply. Applicants must have completed and closed out any previous League grants before applying.

All projects must include two components: A cultural resources survey or historic district nomination completed by a historic preservation consultant. NEW for 2026 : An arts component wherein the applicant hires a NYS-based artist to create an artistic work that responds to and/or engages with the survey/district work. Eligible arts-based projects will engage the community in the survey work.

The goals of this new requirement are to build stronger relationships between preservation and the creative arts and to utilize the arts to increase public engagement with survey and district nomination work. The applicant must hire a NYS-based artist to create an artistic work that responds to and/or engages with the survey/historic district work and engages the public.

Eligible art projects include but are not limited to: permanent or temporary public art installations; artist-designed interpretive signage; performance-based art that takes place in and responds to the study area; place-based events that engage the wider community. Awards will include up to $10,000 for the arts component.

The full grant application will require the following: Resume/CV of the NYS-based artist who will lead the project Project proposal from the artist that provides a project budget; an overall description of the project and end product; and that outlines how the artist will engage with the public and the survey/district project.

Applicants may contract with a nonprofit arts organization or artist collective to carry out the arts component, however, an individual project manager must be identified. The preservation consultant who is carrying out the survey/district portion of the project may not serve as the artist. Eligible Expenses & Grant Awards Requests of up to $30,000 are allowed.

Awards include up to $20,000 for preservation consultant fees for the survey and historic district component and up to $10,000 for the arts component. A 10% cash match applies to the survey and historic district component. There is NO required match for the arts component.

Survey and Historic District Component Grant funds are intended to support the direct consultant costs of carrying out cultural resource surveys and historic district nominations. Costs can include consultant fees including in-state travel, photography, report production costs, and other associated expenses. Grant funds cannot be used toward applicant staff time or overhead costs.

Applicant is required to provide at least 10% of the preservation consultant fees as a cash match. In-kind services and staff time do not count toward match requirements. Please note that the preservation consultant must provide a proposal that shows an itemized breakdown of the fees, tasks, and deliverables.

Lump sum fees are not acceptable. Eligible expenses under the arts component include artist fees and stipends, art supplies, promotion/advertising, and other expenses directly related to carrying out the art project. The arts component is not subject to any match.

The application process is entirely online. Prospective applicants must first complete a pre-application to determine eligibility and receive the full application link. The pre-application is available until 5:00 p.

m. on Friday, August 28, 2026. Click here to pre-apply .

If your pre-application is approved, the link to complete the full application will be emailed to you. Please allow up to 2 business days for a reply. The deadline to submit final applications is 5:00 p.

m. on Wednesday, September 30, 2026 . Applicants will be notified by email approximately 12 weeks after the application deadline.

The successful applicant must: Sign and return the grant contract and consultant agreement before grant funds can be released. Oversee the completion of the consultant project (survey or district nomination) within one year of the contract date. Plan and implement the arts component of the project to occur no later than one year after completion of the consultant project (survey or district nomination).

Submit the final report form to the Preservation League of NYS to close the grant process. Application Review Process Applications are evaluated based on the model of our partner organization, the New York State Council on the Arts. The League will convene an independent panel of professionals in historic preservation and the arts.

Panelists and staff will evaluate applications for technical feasibility and alignment with program criteria. Panelists will rate the three criteria below on a scale from 0–5. Each application will receive an overall score which averages all three criteria.

Any application scoring 2 or below in any criterion will be ineligible for support. Historic Preservation Project: the proposed cultural resources survey or historic district component, as demonstrated by: The architectural, cultural, and historical significance of the historic resource(s).

Will the survey or designation play an important role in helping document, preserve, and tell the story of one or more of the following: an individual, culture, group of people, event, period of time in NYS history, a method of construction, an architectural style or building/landscape type? Note that higher style resources are not more significant than vernacular resources with little or no architectural ornamentation.

Are the historic resources in the community under threat (e.g., by development pressures, erosion or flooding, structural issues, or neglect)? Does this grant align with a unique window of opportunity to complete this project? The appropriateness of the survey/historic district project, consultant(s), and project budget.

Does the applicant clearly convey the survey/historic district project’s benefit to the community? In the case of district nominations and expansions, has SHPO provided feedback to the applicant about the feasibility of the proposed project? Does the consultant’s resume demonstrate they have the experience and knowledge to complete the project on time and on budget?

Does the survey/historic district project budget align with the scope of work? Does the preservation consultant’s proposal show an itemized breakdown of the fees, tasks, and deliverables? (Note that lump sum figures in the consultant proposal are not acceptable; proposals that lack a breakdown of fees will be scored accordingly.)

Artistic Project : the arts component, as demonstrated by: Does the proposed arts component reflect a clear artistic vision that will respond to or engage with the survey/district work? Does the proposed arts component seem well-designed, distinctive, and relevant to the project study area? Will this work make a significant and creative contribution to the preservation field, the arts, and/or the general public?

Has a NYS-based artist(s) been identified and committed to carrying out the art project? Has the artist provided a resume/CV with relevant experience, credentials, and work samples? Does the artist demonstrate the ability to implement art projects with public engagement?

Does the arts component budget pay the artist(s) and, if applicable, cover reasonable related art project expenses? Community benefit and access Does the project thoughtfully and inclusively engage with the local community? Does the proposed project offer the public the opportunity to participate in the creative process?

Does the proposed project connect art, culture, and historic preservation (as it pertains to the survey or designation project) in a meaningful way? Organizational and Managerial : the applicant organization, as demonstrated by: The applicant’s overall organizational budget Does the organizational budget demonstrate best practices in fiscal management?

The applicant’s organizational capacity Does the applicant demonstrate that they have the staff, board, and/or volunteer capacity to oversee the completion of the project? Is the project timeline realistic? Does the applicant demonstrate the ability to promote the project to maximize public engagement?

The applicant’s ability to raise sufficient funds to complete the project Has the applicant detailed how they are providing the required 10% cash match? If the project cost is beyond the scope of these grant funds, has the applicant detailed how they will raise the additional funds?

Submission of a complete and compelling grant application Applications that meet one or more of these funding priorities will receive priority consideration. Applicants that are 501(c)(3) arts/culture organizations. Projects that identify and preserve histories, places, and culture associated with underrepresented communities (see below).

Projects that address issues of social justice, diversity, equity, access, and inclusion. Projects that respond to challenges created by climate change.

Commitment to Underrepresented Communities The Preservation League and its regrant partner, the New York State Council on the Arts, embrace the widest spectrum of cultural expression and artistic pluralism and encourage funded organizations to demonstrate a holistic and comprehensive commitment to DEIA (diversity, equity, inclusion, and access).

NYSCA interprets underrepresented communities as including, but not limited to: African American/Caribbean, Latino/Hispanic, Asian/Pacific Islander, Middle Eastern, Native American/Indigenous communities; People in areas with scarce cultural resources (including rural communities); disabled communities; LGBTQIA+ communities; neurodiverse communities; underserved older adults; veterans; low income and unhoused populations; as well as justice involved juveniles and adults.

Frequently Asked Questions regarding the new Arts Component Q : Do I have to hire an artist to carry out the arts component of the project or can my organization (the applicant) lead this portion of the project? A : You must hire a NYS-based artist to lead the art project and community engagement. The artist may NOT be a staff member of the applicant organization.

The artist may NOT be the preservation consultant who is completing the survey/district portion of the project. You may choose to work with a nonprofit arts organization or artist collective rather than an individual artist, however, you will need to identify an individual within that organization/collective who is the project manager. Q : Can I wait to select my artist until after funding is awarded?

What if I want to put out an open call for artists? A : You must select the artist prior to submitting your grant application. The selected artist must supply a resume/CV and a proposal that outlines the art project budget, timeline, and a general idea of what the final product will be.

If you choose to put out a call for artists, that must take place and the artist must be selected prior to submitting your grant application. Q : For the purposes of the grant application, how detailed does the arts component project need to be?

A : The artist's proposal and the applicant's grant narrative should describe, in general terms, what the end product will be, e.g. performance, temporary or permanent installation, mural, pop-up event, etc. The artist proposal should also provide a rough project timeline and explain, in general terms, how the artist plans to engage with the survey/district work and how the artist will engage the public.

Q : Are there requirements for how the arts component grant award is spent? A : Up to $10,000 will be awarded towards the arts component of your project. That funding can go towards the artist's fee, supplies, promotion/advertising, etc. How the expenses are divided should be determined by the artist and applicant.

Please note that the artist's proposal should include a breakdown of anticipated expenses. Q : How is the grant funding distributed for the arts component? A : The entirety of the grant award--including both the survey/district project award and the arts component award--will be distributed to the grant applicant.

The grant applicant will be responsible for paying the artist and other arts-related expenses. Q : Do oral histories qualify as an arts project? A : For the purposes of this grant program, oral histories alone do not qualify as an arts project.

However, an artist could create an artistic project that engages with or responds to oral histories. An artistic work, in some form, must result from the project and that artistic work must also engage the public. Q : Do architectural walking tours qualify as an arts project?

A : Walking tours alone do not qualify as an arts project, however, a public walking tour could be a component of the arts project. For example: a walking tour with a companion booklet/guide designed or illustrated by an artist. Note: If you choose to engage the preservation consultant who is conducting the survey/district project in leading a walking tour, they may not be paid with the arts portion of the grant award.

Q : Can the art project be part of a pre-existing event? A : Yes, the art project can take place during a pre-existing event or program as long as the arts component is providing new content or programming. This grant should not be used to fund pre-existing programming.

For example, if your community hosts an annual sidewalk chalk festival, perhaps one of the pieces created at that festival would involve your project artist engaging youth to create a large piece of sidewalk chalk art inspired by your community's historic architecture. Q : Can the result of the arts component be temporary, like a performance? A : Yes, the arts component can be a performance, event, or temporary installation.

Applicants will be required to provide photographic documentation of any such events or installations as well as data about public participation, attendance, etc. in their final grant report. Q : What are some examples of events that would qualify for the arts component?

A : Some examples of eligible arts-based events include (but are not limited to): pop-up events that activate a vacant or under-utilized historic space; an art crawl; a sidewalk chalk festival; a dance performance; a musical performance. The event must have a creative arts focus and must respond to and/or engage with the survey/historic district project.

Note that if the art project is part of a pre-existing event, the arts component related to this project must be providing new content or programming to that pre-existing event. Q : Can the art project utilize culinary arts? A : NYSCA generally does not support culinary arts through their programs so an art project that centers around culinary arts likely would not be eligible.

Q : When should the arts component take place? A : The exact timing of the arts component should be determined by the artist and grant applicant. Applicants may wish to wait until the preservation consultant has completed their work or they may wish for the artist to engage with the survey/district work earlier in the process.

Q : Can the art project be displayed/exhibited inside a privately-owned building? A : No. The key to a successful art component is public engagement, whether in the creative process or through free access, and public access to a privately controlled space cannot be assured. Want to learn more about these grants before submitting an application?

Click here to watch the recording of our informational webinar . Want to learn more about artist-led community engagement more generally? Click here to watch a recording of a recent panel discussion on this topic .

Interested in how artists can be embedded in planning processes to help engage communities and drive dialogue? Click here to watch our recent panel digging into this topic .

We’ve also gathered additional resources, including examples of how artists have successfully been incorporated in preservation projects, historic districts, and at historic sites: Resource Guide: Artist-Led Community Engagement Click below for a printable version of the guidelines: Please reach out if you have any questions: