Downtown Rock Island is well on it's way to becoming an official historic district.
City employee and Urban Planner Miles Brainard says the city hired a "Historic Preservation Consultant" late last year. Erica Ruggiero from MIA Architects has spent the last year researching and drafting a proposal to add Downtown Rock Island to the National Register of Historic Places.
Brainard says the whole city stands to benefit.
"The benefits of a National Register Historic District are mainly two things. The first is prestige, right? A community can look at this and say, 'Hey, you know, we have a collection of historically important buildings, they're an integral part of our story'. And then, the second thing is the historic tax credit access." said Brainard.
It would help the city restore older properties.
While writing the report, Brainard says the consultant has studied the architects, styles, constuction dates, purpose of the buildings, and how well they're preserved.
Ruggiero will present the report to the Rock Island Preservation Commission next week. If approved, the presentation will be submitted in June to the State Historic Preservation Board for review.