Kane Street neighborhood added to historic register

By Ed Nadolski

Editor in Chief

Owners of 140 historic homes and other structures in Burlington’s Kane Street neighborhood are now eligible for state tax credits awarded for exterior rehabilitation and upkeep of their buildings.

The City of Burlington and the Racine County Economic Development Corp. jointly announced late last week that the area – which includes 159 buildings, of which 140 are considered historic – was added to the Wisconsin Register of Historic Places last month.

The Wisconsin Historic Preservation Review Board unanimously passed the Kane Street Historic Neighborhood District proposal on Nov. 22. The nomination will now be sent to the National Park Service for listing on the National Register of Historic Places – a process that typically takes six moths, according to Dina Penkiunas, national register coordinator at the Wisconsin Historical Society.

According to Burlington Mayor Bob Miller, the designation represents the best of both worlds for property owners in the historic district.

“They don’t have to do anything unless they wish to pursue it,” Miller said, noting that the designation imposes no restrictions on homeowners.

However, those who are interested in making repairs and upgrades that preserve the historic integrity of the district are eligible for a 25 percent tax credit from the state.

For instance, if a homeowner replaces a roof and makes other exterior improvements costing a total of $20,000, the person would be eligible for a $5,000 tax credit on his state income tax return.

Unlike a tax deduction, which reduces a person’s taxable income, a tax credit is a dollar-for-dollar reduction against what a person owes in state income taxes. If the entire credit can’t be used in a single year, a person is allowed to carry over the remaining amount to successive tax years until it is gone, according to the State Historical Society.

According to Miller, the program creates incentive and reward for homeowners, without forcing them into improvements.

According to the state, to be eligible for the tax credits, property owners must spend at least $10,000 on the following types of work within a two-year period:

• Work on the exterior of the house, such as roof replacement and painting, but not including site work such as driveways and landscaping;

• Electrical wiring, not including electrical fixtures;

• Plumbing, not including plumbing fixtures;

• Mechanical systems, such as furnaces, air conditioning, and water heaters; and

• Structural work, such as jacking up floors.

About the district

The 53-acre Kane Street District was nominated for the register based on the example it provides of local architecture over a range of residential, religious and civic buildings constructed between 1844 and approximately 1940.

According to the application forwarded to the National Park Service for consideration:

“The district conveys a sense of historical and architectural cohesiveness through its high style architectural designs of 152 large to moderately size homes, 4 small and modestly sized churches, a Masonic Temple, a school, and a statue, which are distinguished from other residential areas within the city.

“Representative of the march of prevailing architectural styles of the era in which they were constructed, Greek Revival, Queen Anne, American Foursquare, Bungalow, Colonial and other Revival styles are prominent within the district.

“They were well constructed buildings, reflecting the socio-economic status of their original owners. The residences and community buildings within the Kane Street Historic District are well preserved and have much the same appearance today as they would have years ago. The result is now one of Burlington’s most architecturally intact historic residential areas.”

In additions to homes, the district includes Lincoln School – formerly known as Union School and now used as offices for the Burlington Area School District – and the statue of Abraham Lincoln, which has held a place of honor at the intersection of Kane and State streets since 1912.

Perhaps the most prominent parcel not included in the district is that of Immaculate Conception St. Mary Parish and School at the extreme western edge of the district. The parish recently celebrated its 175th anniversary. The parish’s original masonry church, built in 1845, is no longer in existence.

The process

The designation of the Kane Street Historic District has been years in making. Earlier this year, the city’s Historic Preservation Commission contracted with Legacy Architecture, Inc., to research and prepare the nomination to the history registers.

The research was funded by a $10,176 Certified Local Government Grant received from the National Parks Service through the state Historical Society. The Racine County Economic Development Corp. prepared the grant application and managed the project as part of its contract with the city.

Representatives of the state Historical Society and Legacy Architecture hosted a meeting in November for residents of the district to explain the tax credit program and present the findings of the historic research.

A copy of the complete nomination application, including a map of the district, can be found by clicking here.