Learn more about the impact of the City's Historic Tax Credit
The November hearing agenda is now live! Note that the hearing is on a WEDNESDAY (not the typical Tuesday)
Planning a project? Review the Historic Preservation Design Guidelines first!
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August 2025 - Eric Holcomb, Executive Director of the Commission for Historical and Architectural Preservation (CHAP) and Division Chief for the Historical and Architectural Preservation Division of the Planning Department is retiring after 31 years of service to the City of Baltimore. He began working for the city as a historic preservation analyst in 1994 and served in increasingly higher positions before being named Executive Director in 2014 by the Commission.
He has been instrumental in many of the initiatives at CHAP during his tenure as Executive Director. The City Council passed a law that requires realtors to disclose that a property is in a local historic district or Baltimore City Landmark, introduced conservation district enabling legislation, and updated Article 6 of the City Code, the enabling legislation for CHAP. He staffed Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake’s Special Commission on Public Confederate Monuments in 2014-2015, and since that time, has been a key player in the ongoing conversations about the final disposition of Baltimore’s monuments to the Lost Cause. There has been a steady increase in local historic districts and landmark designations under his leadership.
Eric has also contributed to many of the Department of Planning’s educational outreach efforts, such as the background section of the recently completed Comprehensive Plan, histories for numerous neighborhood plans, and the foundational presentation for the Department’s Planning Academy, which focuses on the history of structural racism in Baltimore’s planning and housing policies of the 20th century.
Eric’s strong belief in collaboration shaped his work as a public servant. He believes that “Historic Preservation is an essential component to any successful neighborhood revitalization and stewardship efforts in Baltimore. Historic Preservation can't turn neighborhoods around on its own. But in partnership with neighborhood associations, nonprofit development organizations and our colleagues in DHCD and Planning, we can.” The success of CHAP’s historic tax credit program being used to transform long-vacant housing back into homes, especially in communities that have been historically disinvested, such as Barclay Greenmount, Johnston Square, Reservoir Hill, and Upton, upholds that ethos. Eric also believes that positive interactions with CHAP staff and the design review process help people – especially contractors and developers – to become partners in preservation. In 2016, he was awarded the Mayor’s Medallion for Meritorious Service, and in 2018 received an Honorable mention for the Richard A. Lidinsky, Sr. award for Excellence in Public Service. He reminisces that “The greatest part of the job was meeting people and bonding with them about how much we love this city.”
The Commission has named Lauren Schiszik, who currently serves as the Supervisor in the HAP division, as Eric’s replacement. She has worked for the department since 2011, serving a variety of roles in the division, including as Landmark designation coordinator, design reviewer, and archeologist. She is an adjunct faculty member in the Historic Preservation graduate program at Goucher College and serves on the Governor’s Commission on Maryland Military Monuments. Lauren is honored by the Commission’s confidence in her vision as Executive Director, and looks forward to advancing the goals of people-centered historic preservation in Baltimore.
The Commission for Historical and Architectural Preservation (CHAP) is pursuing the creation of a Historic Conservation District program for the City of Baltimore. Over the past several years, the Commission has heard from many community associations that are interested in historic designation that is less stringent in design review requirements than the current local historic district designation, and this is the Commission’s proposed solution. The Commission is seeking testimony from neighborhood associations, preservation advocates, citizens, and other stakeholders on ideas about creating this program.
At the October 10, 2023 CHAP hearing, CHAP staff presented a report on conservation districts including how they are used by other local municipalities throughout the country, and how a conservation district program might function in Baltimore. At the hearing, the Commission will take public testimony on the proposal to create this program. People may also submit their testimony ahead of time via email or letter. No decision will be made at this hearing. This hearing is the kick-off of the public engagement process for this initiative.
You can learn more about conservation districts here.
Review materials from the March 14, 2023 CHAP Commission Hearing about the request to demolish the Hendler Creamery Building at 1100 East Baltimore Street in the Jonestown Historic District. Get more information here.
Please note that due to a staffing shortage the city will no longer be providing appraisals for the CHAP Historic Tax Credit. Applicants will be required to provide their own.
The provided appraisal must;
If you or the appraiser have any questions, you may refer to the addendum of the Rules and Regulations for guidance.
Since the creation of the program in 1996, CHAP has believed that the city's historic tax credit would be an important tool to enhance the architectural, cultural, and economic value of the City. While the physical impact is easy to see, it was important for CHAP to measure the economic impact of the credit. In 2019, the Department of Planning hired PlaceEconomics to analyze the historic tax credit. The result, completed in the summer of 2020, is the following report; An Analysis of the Baltimore Historic Preservation Tax Credit. The report supports positive assumptions about the value of the credit and brings to light new information about the use and benefit of the credit in communities across the city.
In May 2019, the staff of the Commission for Historical and Architectural Preservation (CHAP) received requests to temporarily designate 2216 Druid Hill Avenue as a landmark to prevent demolition while people built a coalition to save it. The requestors informed staff that world-renowned entertainer Cab Calloway lived at this address during his youth in Baltimore. Following investigations by CHAP staff over several months in 2019, the Commission declined to pursue landmark designation for this property. Based on the findings of the staff’s in-depth research about Cab, his family, and their residences in Baltimore, 2216 Druid Hill Avenue is not recommended as the best site to honor Cab Calloway’s legacy in Baltimore. Instead, the staff has determined that other sites would be better to honor and celebrate the legacy of Blanche and Cab Calloway. CHAP staff is now working with its city partners, neighborhood stakeholders, and other partners to not only celebrate the legacy of Cab and Blanche Calloway but to celebrate the history and culture of this community. Read more about the Calloway's here.