Historic Preservation

A GAO survey found that it will cost an estimated $755 million to restore 712 properties, mostly buildings, that have been identified by the nation's 103 historically black colleges and universities as historic properties. This estimate includes various capital improvement costs, such as making the properties more accessible to persons with disabilities, replacing roofs, and removing lead-based paint or asbestos. The schools have already set aside about $60 million to restore and preserve historic properties.

GAO noted that: (1) all 103 historically black colleges and universities responded to GAO's survey; (2) respondents identified 712 historic properties that were owned by the schools; (3) most of these properties were at a small number of schools and were mostly buildings rather than structures, sites, or objects; (4) about half, 323, of the historic properties identified were already on the National Register of Historic Places--the official list of sites, buildings, structures, and objects significant in American history, architecture, archeology, engineering, and culture; (5) the others were either eligible for the National Register on the basis of state historic preservation officers' surveys or considered historic by the colleges and universities; (6) according to information the schools provided, an estimated $755 million is needed to restore and preserve the 712 properties; (7) the cost estimates include the capital improvement costs to restore and preserve the historic properties, such as making the properties more accessible to people with disabilities, replacing roofs, and removing lead-based paint or asbestos; (8) the respondents were asked not to include routine maintenance costs; (9) some of the schools identified a total of about $60 million in funds that had already been set aside to restore and preserve specific historic properties; and (10) the schools used a number of different methods to calculate the estimated restoration and preservation costs.