I
104TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 3911
To establish the Great Falls Historic District in the State of New Jersey,
and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JULY 26, 1996
Mr. PALLONE introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Resources
A BILL
To establish the Great Falls Historic District in the State
of New Jersey, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Great Falls Preserva-
tion and Redevelopment Act’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds that—
(1) the Great Falls Historic District in the
State of New Jersey is an area of historical signifi-
cance as an early site of planned industrial develop-
ment, and has remained largely intact, including
architecturally significant structures;
(2) the Great Falls Historic District is listed on
the National Register of Historic Places and has
been designated a National Historic Landmark;
(3) the Great Falls Historic District is situated
within a one-half hour’s drive from New York City
and a 2 hour’s drive from Philadelphia, Hartford,
New Haven, and Wilmington;
(4) the District was developed by the Society of
Useful Manufactures, an organization whose leaders
included a number of historically renowned individ-
uals, including Alexander Hamilton; and
(5) the Great Falls Historic District has been
the subject of a number of studies that have shown
that the District possesses a combination of historic
significance and natural beauty worthy of and
uniquely situated for preservation and redevelop-
ment.
SEC. 3. PURPOSES.
The purposes of this Act are—
(1) to preserve and interpret, for the edu-
cational and inspirational benefit of the public, the
contribution to our national heritage of certain his-
toric and cultural lands and edifices of the Great
Falls Historic District, with emphasis on harnessing
this unique urban environment for its educational
and recreational value; and
(2) to enhance economic and cultural redevelop-
ment within the District.
SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) DISTRICT.—The term ‘‘District’’ means the
Great Falls Historic District established by section
5.
(2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means
the Secretary of the Interior.
SEC. 5. GREAT FALLS HISTORIC DISTRICT.
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established the
Great Falls Historic District in the city of Paterson, in
Passaic County, New Jersey.
(b) BOUNDARIES.—The boundaries of the District
shall be the boundaries specified for the Great Falls His-
toric District listed on the National Register of Historic
Places.
SEC. 6. DEVELOPMENT PLAN.
(a) GRANTS AND COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.—The
Secretary may make grants and enter into cooperative
agreements with the State of New Jersey, local govern-
ments, and private nonprofit entities under which the Sec-
retary agrees to pay not more than 50 percent of the costs
of—
(1) preparation of a plan for the development of
historic, architectural, natural, cultural, and inter-
pretive resources within the District; and
(2) implementation of projects approved by the
Secretary under the development plan.
(b) CONTENTS
OF PLAN.—The development plan
shall include—
(1) an evaluation of—
(A) the physical condition of historic and
architectural resources; and
(B) the environmental and flood hazard
conditions within the District; and
(2) recommendations for—
(A) 
rehabilitating, 
reconstructing, 
and
adaptively reusing the historic and architectural
resources;
(B) preserving viewsheds, focal points, and
streetscapes;
(C) establishing gateways to the District;
(D) establishing and maintaining parks
and public spaces;
(E) developing public parking areas;
(F) improving pedestrian and vehicular cir-
culation within the District;
(G) improving security within the District,
with an emphasis on preserving historically sig-
nificant structures from arson; and
(H) establishing a visitors’ center.
SEC. 7. RESTORATION, PRESERVATION, AND INTERPRETA-
TION OF PROPERTIES.
(a) COOPERATIVE
AGREEMENTS.—The Secretary
may enter into cooperative agreements with the owners of
properties within the District that the Secretary deter-
mines to be of historical or cultural significance, under
which the Secretary may—
(1) pay not more than 50 percent of the cost
of restoring and improving the properties;
(2) provide technical assistance with respect to
the preservation and interpretation of the properties;
and
(3) mark and provide interpretation of the
properties.
(b) PROVISIONS.—A cooperative agreement under
subsection (a) shall provide that—
(1) the Secretary shall have the right of access
at reasonable times to public portions of the prop-
erty for interpretive and other purposes;
(2) no change or alteration may be made in the
property except with the agreement of the property
owner, the Secretary, and any Federal agency that
may have regulatory jurisdiction over the property;
and
(3) if at any time the property is converted,
used, or disposed of in a manner that is contrary to
the purposes of this Act, as determined by the Sec-
retary, the property owner shall be liable to the Sec-
retary for the greater of—
(A) the amount of assistance provided by
the Secretary for the property; or
(B) the portion of the increased value of
the property that is attributable to that assist-
ance, determined as of the date of the conver-
sion, use, or disposal.
(c) APPLICATIONS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—A property owner that de-
sires to enter into a cooperative agreement under
subsection (a) shall submit to the Secretary an ap-
plication describing how the project proposed to be
funded will further the purposes of the District.
(2) CONSIDERATION.—In making such funds
available under this section, the Secretary shall give
consideration to projects that provide a greater le-
verage of Federal funds.
SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec-
retary to carry out this Act—
(1) $250,000 for grants and cooperative agree-
ments for the development plan under section 6; and
(2) $50,000 for the provision of technical as-
sistance and $3,000,000 for the provision of other
assistance under cooperative agreements under sec-
tion 7.
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