TRENTON — Historic preservation gives communities a sense of place, but it offers more than educational or esthetic rewards. Historic preservation means economic growth.

Rehabilitating historic sites creates jobs, generates income, attracts tourism and spurs neighborhood revitalization for small towns eager to draw visitors, urban centers looking for a renaissance and all communities in between.

The N.J. Historic Trust is doing its part to revitalize the state’s economy by helping municipalities profit from their past in the midst of the current global recession.

Earlier this year, the Historic Trust, an affiliate of the state Department of Com­munity Affairs, announced its recommended list for the 2008 Historic Preservation Grants. Overwhelmed by the number of quality applications and influenced by Gov. Corzine’s economic stimulus ef­forts, the Historic Trust selected 60 historic sites around the state to receive a total of $15.5 million in grant funding. The total grant award had originally been set at $10.5 million.

Historic sites set to receive grant funding, which still must be approved by the State Legislature, include the Bivalve shipping sheds & wharves and the Millville Bank.

The row of seven remaining shipping sheds and wharves is one of the few remainders of the multimillion-dollar Maurice River & Delaware Bay oyster industry that once prospered on the bay, employing thousands of workers. The Central Railroad of New Jersey built the sheds and wharves between 1904 and 1916. Today, the Bayshore Discovery Project uses the site as their headquarters, a museum, an educational facility and the base of operations for New Jersey’s tall ship, the A.J. Meerwald. A pending $750,000 grant would help fund the fourth phase of restoration, including wharf roof restoration and interior and exterior finishes.

The Millville Bank was first constructed in an Italianate design in 1857. Fifty years later it was renovated in a Colonial revival style and converted into the city’s library. Since 1977, the building has been home to the Millville Historical Society’s headquarters, exhibits and collections. It is set to receive a $29,767 grant to fund preparations for a preservation plan, roof restoration and interpretative brochures.

Rehabilitating historic places like the Bivalve shipping sheds and wharves and the Millville Bank generates more jobs and more income than equivalent new construction and highway construction projects. Tourists visiting historic sites also tend to spend more than travelers going to other destinations.

Heritage tourism also capitalizes on the trend of people taking trips and weekend getaways closer to home. Additionally, historic sites enhance New Jersey’s image as a vacation destination that offers more than the Shore and casinos.

Historic preservation benefits surrounding neighborhoods and business as well. Buildings that may have been eyesores are repaired, thereby improving the value of the property itself and enhancing the property values of nearby homes and businesses. Many historic buildings are converted to other uses such as housing, restaurants, night spots and offices and therefore generate substantially more in taxes. Historic sites also often attract developers to the area, which can lead to new economic opportunities.

At a time of financial uncertainty, historic preservation is a rock solid investment that’s proven to offer an excellent rate of return in more ways than one.

Joseph V. Doria Jr. is commissioner of the N.J. Department of Community Affairs; Dorothy Guzzo is executive director of the N.J. Trust Historic Trust.