Stabilize, Rehabilitate, and Preserve Historic Structures | P17AS00261

Opportunity Information: Apply for P17AS00261

The "Stabilize, Rehabilitate, and Preserve Historic Structures" grant opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number P17AS00261) is a National Park Service (NPS) discretionary funding initiative under the U.S. Department of the Interior focused on urgent preservation needs at Big Bend National Park. Big Bend contains more than 100 historic structures that help the park interpret and present the lived history of the American West to visitors, including early ranching and cowboy culture, mining activity and supporting infrastructure, early agricultural and irrigation systems, and the presence of the U.S. Army along the border. The sites and structures reflect a wide range of frontier-era themes and features such as ranch buildings, corrals and livestock-related infrastructure, wagons and transportation remnants, old mines and mule-train routes, windmills and hand-dug wells, and military camp elements tied to cavalry units, Indian scouts, and Buffalo soldiers. The overall intent of the opportunity is to keep these resources from being lost and to ensure they remain available for education, interpretation, and public understanding of the region's history.

A key driver behind the grant is the park's limited capacity to keep up with preservation work. The opportunity description emphasizes that NPS staffing shortages and constrained maintenance budgets have created a situation where many historic structures are actively deteriorating. Without timely stabilization and repair, some of these resources may disappear entirely, which would permanently reduce the park's ability to interpret the Old West and related borderlands history. The grant is positioned as an emergency intervention to slow or stop ongoing loss, addressing preservation needs that the park cannot meet on its own under current conditions.

The opportunity also clarifies what kinds of historic resources are in scope. Many of the targeted structures are eligible for, or already listed on, the National Register of Historic Places. Others are included on, or eligible for inclusion on, the NPS List of Classified Structures. The description also references "Vanishing Treasures" resources and notes that certain structures may be part of a broader Cultural Landscape or a Maintained Archeological Site. In practical terms, this means the project is not limited to a single building type; it can include a range of historic and cultural resources so long as they meet NPS criteria and contribute meaningfully to the park's historic themes and interpretive mission. The description recognizes that some structures retain stronger historic integrity than others, but it also makes an important point: even heavily deteriorated or partially ruined structures can still convey significance and may be appropriate candidates for stabilization, rehabilitation, or in some cases rebuilding for interpretation when justified.

From an administrative standpoint, the award is structured as a cooperative agreement, indicating an expectation of substantial involvement by the NPS in guiding, coordinating, or partnering on the work rather than simply issuing funds with minimal federal engagement. The funding activity category is listed as Natural Resources (CFDA 15.945), reflecting the way NPS often categorizes cultural resource protection within broader stewardship programs. Eligible applicants are limited to public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, meaning the competition is designed for state universities, public colleges, and similar entities that can partner with the park and contribute professional expertise, student involvement, research capacity, and preservation labor or planning support consistent with federal standards.

The opportunity was created on May 15, 2017, with an original closing date of May 24, 2017, indicating a short application window typical of some targeted or time-sensitive NPS funding actions. The expected number of awards is one, and the award ceiling is $49,972, suggesting a single, focused project of modest scale aimed at achieving tangible near-term preservation outcomes. Overall, the grant is centered on preventing the irreversible loss of historically significant structures at Big Bend National Park and sustaining the physical evidence needed to tell the park's frontier, ranching, mining, military, and borderlands stories to the public.

• The Department of the Interior, National Park Service in the natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Stabilize, Rehabilitate, and Preserve Historic Structures" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.945.
• This funding opportunity was created on May 15, 2017.
• Applicants must submit their applications by May 24, 2017. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $49,972.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Public and State controlled institutions of higher education.

Apply for P17AS00261

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