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.

Arts Component
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.

• Project timeline

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.

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.

Arts Component
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.

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.

  • Project urgency.

    • 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?

    • Does the project help fulfill the goals of a long-term or strategic plan?

    • 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:

  • Project Creativity

    • 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?

  • Artist involvement

    • 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.