WHAT WE DO

Education

Butte CPR sponsors educational events, highlighting the importance, preservation, and maintenance of Butte's historic architecture. Past activities have included popular Home Tours of historic residences as well as guided walking tours of the Uptown Business District and our popular Dust to Dazzle and Stained Glass Tours. CPR also gives grants and awards to owners of residential and commercial buildings, increasing public awareness of outstanding renovation efforts, and publishes educational booklets and pamphlets. We sponsor workshops covering various aspects of repair of historic structures (bricks, windows, hot water heat). We offer talks at no charge to community groups, including presentations on Stained Glass and other historical topics. CPR volunteers in 2008 provided monthly educational visits to Butte's Beyond Assisted Living homes. For 2008, CPR had a weekly column in the Montana Standard on aspects of architecture and preservation.

For our current schedule of events, workshops, and available lectures, please visit our Education Page.

Ordinance and Oversight

CPR keeps abreast of initiatives by local government and business and civic organizations, supporting or opposing them and offering development assistance as appropriate. CPR members attend meetings including those of the Urban Revitalization Agency, Historic Preservation Commission, and Council of Commissioners. CPR was instrumental in improving contacts between Butte-Silver Bow County and buyers of tax-delinquent property. CPR members have been appointed to the Historic Preservation Commission and the County Planning Board. See also the Historic Preservation Ordinance.

Salvage

When demolition is unavoidable, CPR salvages historic architectural features and sells them for recycled use in historic buildings. Some of the larger salvage efforts included a major renovation of a building on the Montana Tech campus, the Superintendent's House at the Warm Springs Hospital (in cooperation with the Anaconda Historical Society), and various residential properties that St. James Healthcare needed to demolish. CPR was able to salvage maple, oak, and fir flooring, staircases, moldings, pillars, hardware, doors and door frames, casings, baseboards, drawers, tin ceiling tiles, marble, windows, banisters, and bathroom furnishings. Some examples of available salvage • Salvage Links

Labor

CPR provides labor — all on a volunteer basis — to accomplish the salvage described above and the building improvements described below. We also provide a free service helping protect antique wrought iron gates from theft. Example from a Montana Standard article • Article on the O'Rourke

Historic Improvement Project Fund

Through its Historic Improvement Project grant program, CPR gives grants up to $1,000 to owners of pre-1950 residential and commercial buildings. Recipients can use grant money for facade improvements such as exterior painting, brick re-pointing, and replacing or repairing original architectural features. Awards have totaled $17,000 since 1997. More information on Grants • Previous grant winners