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New law raises historic preservation tax credit by fifty percent

Sophia Schmidt, Delaware Public Media
Barb and Marty Wright join legislators and Gov. Carney as he signs the bill into law

Among the more than two dozen bills Gov. Carney signed into law this week is one that raises the tax credit for historic property owners.

The maximum tax credit for rehabilitating a historic, owner-occupied building is now $30,000. It was previously $20,000.

The increase will help property owners like Barb Wright. She lives in the historic Lesley Manor in Old New Castle- and says upkeep can be expensive.

“When you want a board, you don’t just go to Home Depot. You have to have that milled because it’s a true one -inch or two-inch,” she said.

Wright and her husband consider themselves stewards of the property to help it survive into the future.

State Senator Nicole Poore sponsored the bill.

She says it incentivizes citizens to do the work of preserving Delaware’s history— which she says would otherwise fall to the State.

Sophia Schmidt is a Delaware native. She comes to Delaware Public Media from NPR’s Weekend Edition in Washington, DC, where she produced arts, politics, science and culture interviews. She previously wrote about education and environment for The Berkshire Eagle in Pittsfield, MA. She graduated from Williams College, where she studied environmental policy and biology, and covered environmental events and local renewable energy for the college paper.
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