Historic Macon names 2025 Fading Five, urges action on tax credit
Advocates say Georgia’s Rehabilitation Tax Credit is essential to saving historic commercial buildings across downtown Macon.
MACON, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – Historic Macon has unveiled its 2025 Fading Five list, highlighting endangered properties in the city.
This year, historic commercial buildings in downtown Macon have been added to the list, joining other notable sites such as the D.T. Walton Building, the Dr. E.E. Green House, the Roxy Theatre, and the Hillyer-Kernaghan House.
Executive Director Nathan Lott spoke Thursday about the urgency of preserving these sites, saying efforts will become even more challenging if Georgia’s Rehabilitation Tax Credit program is not renewed.
“It has been instrumental in making viable projects that are complicated and expensive but have big community benefits,” Lott said.
Historic Macon, NewTown Macon, the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation and other advocacy groups are urging lawmakers to extend and expand the tax credit during the upcoming General Assembly session in January. Right now, the annual cap sits at $30 million, but the state has already run out of credits nearly four years before the program is scheduled for renewal in 2029.
“Without the tax credit these projects aren’t possible,” said Zach Westerfield, founder and managing partner of a real estate investment and development company. “The 25% tax credit offsets the development cost. Like I mentioned, these buildings are usually more expensive to save than they are to tear down, and the only way we can make it work is with that tax credit.”
Lott points out neighboring states have similar programs that are uncapped or have higher caps, making them more attractive to real estate investors.
“If you’re a real estate investor and you’re looking at should I invest in Augusta, Georgia, or should I invest in South Carolina, Aiken looks like the safer bet because they don’t have this situation,” he said.
Preserving historic places, Lott says, is not only vital for community identity but also for economic competitiveness.
Among the downtown buildings that could benefit from a restoration of historic tax credits are the former Macon Rescue Mission (“Jesus Cares”) building on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard at Poplar Street; the former Macon Health Club building at First and Cherry streets; and the former Masonic Lodge building on First Street.
Historic Macon says the First National Bank and Trust Building on Houston Avenue was rotated off the 2025 list.
Since 2015, Historic Macon says it has listed 21 properties on the Fading Five list. 15 of them have been saved and protected, while just one property has been lost.
