Two state legislators will discuss historic preservation tax credits Tuesday night as part of a series of talks presented by the Historic Wilmington Foundation.

The state’s preservation credits, which had been used in the past by developers rehabilitating local historic buildings as a way to offset the cost of those projects, expired at the end of 2014.

State Reps. Ted Davis (R-New Hanover) and Susi Hamilton (D-New Hanover) are expected to talk about why the historic preservation credits weren’t renewed in the last legislative session and what could happen this year in the way of proposals to reinstate them or provide them in another way.

“The focus of this is to get a good assessment of the future of preservation tax credits as well as to use this as a springboard for activism of our members,” George Edwards, executive director of the Historic Wilmington Foundation, said Monday. “We’re looking forward to the discussion tomorrow night and have had a great response so far from our members and the public.”

The event is scheduled for 6:30-8 p.m. at First Church of Christ, Scientist, 1620 Chestnut St. Those who wish to attend are asked to RSVP to the foundation at 762-2511 or [email protected].

Last month, state officials began a bigger push for a renewal of the preservation tax credit program. At an event celebrating the grand opening of a high-end furniture manufacturer’s headquarters at an old mill property in High Point on Dec. 11, Gov. Pat McCrory talked about the importance of the credits.

“This area was once booming with a flurry of activity but has sat idle for decades until now, thanks to BuzziSpace,” McCrory said, referring to the High Point company event in a news release on his office’s website. “Secretary Susan Kluttz [of the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources] and I want to mimic what we see here today across the state, and that’s exactly why the historic tax credit is so important to North Carolina."

Kluttz said in the release, “Historic preservation incentives are critical to the rebirth of rural and urban downtowns. Jobs are created and economic development occurs when abandoned buildings are reborn into apartments, shops and business spaces. We’ve seen this happen across North Carolina, in both small towns and large cities. These incentives also preserve our unique history and community fabric.”

Since 1998, the state had provided a 20 percent credit for those taxpayers who received a 20 percent federal credit, “providing investors with a combined 40 percent credit against eligible costs,” according to the N.C. State Historic Preservation Office. In addition, the state had provided a 30 percent credit “for for the rehabilitation of nonincome-producing historic properties, including private residences,” the SHPO said.

Opponents of credits in general have said such programs play favorites by providing only a select group with incentives, while those in favor of credits have said they are an important catalyst to investment.

From 2001 to 2014 locally, 51 projects at a cost of more than $8.4 million used the state’s preservation tax credit for residential purposes while from 1979 to 2012, 160 commercial projects at a cost of more than $38 million used state and federal preservation tax credits, according to the Historic Wilmington Foundation's numbers.

“It’s early, and it’s a good time to hear from people like Ted and Susi, and they’ve both been boosters of preservation, community quality of life issues, for years,” Edwards said, referring to the timing of the group's preservation tax credit talk. “We’re optimistic that the credits are going to have a good hearing, and we’ll see what happens.”

The state House and Senate reconvene at 9 a.m. Jan. 14, according to the N.C. General Assembly’s website.

“I actually had a person this morning asking about the tax credits, and regretfully, there’s no place for them to turn right now,” Edwards said. “We’re going to push again.”