Nomination must be based in New York State. Nominations in the Project and Publication categories must be complete as of the submission date and must have been completed no earlier than May 2022.

Please note: Letters of support from people familiar with, but not directly involved in, your nomination are required for consideration by the Awards jury.

Nominations must be electronically submitted through SmarterSelect by 4:00 p.m. EST on Monday, June 16, 2025. Early submissions are appreciated and allow us to check your application for completeness. Eligible nominations will be evaluated by the Excellence in Historic Preservation Awards Jury over the summer of 2025. The jury is appointed by the Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Preservation League of NYS. All nominators will be notified of the status of their nomination by the end of August 2025.

The awards jury evaluates each nomination on the following:

• Level of statewide significance

• Impact on underrepresented communities or overlooked history

• Effective solutions to current preservation issues (e.g. climate change, lack of affordable housing, etc.)

• Degree of difficulty faced, and creativity shown in the solution

• Level of impact on the community, region, or state

• Display of collaborative efforts

• For projects: Design sensitivity to the historic character and fabric of the property while utilizing appropriate preservation techniques, such as the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards

Projects
Applauds outstanding preservation, restoration, or rehabilitation projects, big and small. Nominated projects need not be listed on or determined eligible for the National Register of Historic Places, but resources must have demonstrated historic or architectural significance and the rehabilitation should be in keeping with The Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties with Guidelines for Preserving, Rehabilitating, Restoring and Reconstructing Historic Buildings.

Organizations & Communities
Honors municipalities, community groups, nonprofit organizations, neighborhood associations, etc. whose advocacy, public awareness, publications, legal battles, or other preservation efforts have had significant positive impacts on their communities and beyond.

Individuals
Recognizes creative, inspirational leaders whose efforts have encouraged the protection of historic resources and strengthened the historic preservation movement in New York State. Individuals may be government officials, community leaders, local business owners, journalists, or otherwise dedicated preservationists.

Publications
Acknowledges exceptional published surveys, historic structure or landscape reports, histories, etc. that have had a profound influence on preservation work and/or public perception of preservation. Books, films, podcasts, social media campaigns, or other media projects would also fall under the Publications category.

Preservation Trades
Honoring individuals or teams that demonstrate exceptional skill, commitment, and creativity in traditional trades practices.

The Awards jury may or may not make awards in each category in any given year.

Should your nomination be successful, you are expected to work with League staff during September and October 2025 on efforts that recognize and promote your winning nomination. This may include, but is not limited to, participation in an in-person awards ceremony in NYC (tentatively Monday, November 3), blog posts, interviews, additional photography and/or videography, webinars, etc. All nominations must have the full support of the property owner (for Projects) or individuals (for Organizations, Publications, and Individuals). If selected, they must be willing to coordinate with the League on reasonable site access and interviews for promotional purposes. Winners will be expected to keep their winning nomination embargoed until a coordinated public announcement can be made.

Can I submit a nomination on behalf of myself/my organization?
Yes! Self-nominations are allowed and encouraged.

I couldn’t find anyone to write a support letter — can I still submit my nomination?
No, letters of support are required and incomplete nominations will not be considered by the Awards Jury.

Is there a fee to submit a nomination?
There is no nomination fee for the Excellence in Historic Preservation Awards.

My firm has more than one excellent project we’d like to nominate, can we submit multiple nominations?
Yes, multiple nominations from the same nominator will be considered on their individual merits.

Are members of the Awards jury eligible for Awards?
No, Awards jurors and their firms are ineligible.

When will the Awards event take place?
The 2025 Excellence Awards will take place in NYC on Monday, November 3, 2025.