- The revised preservation plan was shaped by public meetings and a review of the county’s 1999 preservation strategy, identifying what worked and where improvements were needed.
- The plan promotes heritage tourism, adaptive reuse projects, interpretive signage, and marketing initiatives to leverage historic sites as drivers of local economic development.
- Planning commission officials plan to expand surveys, cemetery inventories, archaeological research and public outreach while ensuring preservation policies evolve alongside Boone County’s rapid growth.
From Boone County’s Ohio River valley to its rolling hills, the county is peppered with landmarks and buildings that mark its significance to the region’s history.
Boone County contains more than 1,600 historic buildings, nearly 600 archaeological sites, over 225 cemeteries, and more than 100 properties listed on the National Register of Historic Places, according to Bridget Striker, the preservation planner for the Boone County Planning Commission.
Around the turn of the century, the Boone County Planning Commission tasked its Historic Preservation Review Board with crafting a ‘Preservation Plan’ to help the county provide clearer guidelines and recommendations for preserving these historic sites. The board’s first iteration of the plan was published in 1999.
Now, Striker has unveiled the updated plan at the planning commission’s latest meeting on June 17. The update features new goals and initiatives to maintain and advertise the county’s most important landmarks. The update was financed through a $9,000 grant from the Certified Local Government program. It was formally adopted by the board on June 1.
The board comprises seven volunteers, each appointed by the fiscal court. The review board is staffed by a historic preservation planner employed by the Boone County Planning Commission, who also serves as the Boone County Historic Preservation Officer for the Boone Certified Local Government.
One aspect of the board’s consideration while updating the plan was to revise it to support growth, while also preserving the county’s existing landmarks to enhance community identity, attract tourism and boost economic development.
Since 2000, Boone County has added more than 55,000 people to its population. As a result, commercial and residential development has expanded into many parts of the county’s unincorporated areas, as well as into its three incorporated cities of Florence, Union and Walton. The key, Striker said, is to strike the right balance.
“We have a massive amount of resources, many more than anyone else in the state. There’s a lot to manage, and so having a good and effective plan that works with us as we’re growing—we know we’re growing, we’re going to continue to grow,” Striker said. “How do we balance growth and opportunity for growth with preserving not only our historic resources but our heritage as a whole?”
The update process included hosting a series of public meetings throughout 2025 and 2026 to engage the broader community. During these meetings, board members fielded ideas and questions from the public to gather input.
“Then the evaluation of the 1999 plan: what have we accomplished, what we didn’t accomplish, what worked and what didn’t work,” she said. “Not everything works in a plan, right? So we keep moving forward, and the results of the plan were this: we’re going to stay rooted in our community values.”
During her presentation, Striker unveiled several proposed initiatives for the updated plan, including providing heritage education curriculum for the local public school system, youth programs, public workshops, online resource hubs, preservation ambassadorship programs and the expanded use of GIS mapping systems, all aimed at making historic and cultural information more accessible to residents and visitors alike.
In turn, these efforts should hypothetically help raise awareness of Boone County’s history and historic resources and build broader public support for preservation.
One of the major focuses of the preservation plan update was to use Boone County’s historic sites and landmarks to drive tourism and economic development. Striker underscored opportunities to promote historic sites and cultural destinations through the implementation of interpretive signage, preservation passport programs and coordinated marketing efforts.
The plan highlights existing cultural sites and attractions, such as Big Bone Lick State Historic Site, Rabbit Hash, the Dinsmore Homestead, and historic Burlington, as assets that can attract tourists while simultaneously supporting local businesses and strengthening community pride.
In addition, the plan encourages adaptive reuse—the process of repurposing existing or historic buildings for a use other than their original purpose—so older buildings can preserve their historic character while remaining economically viable.
Another central pillar of the update was to continue documentation efforts, since the county has many historic buildings, cemeteries, archaeological sites, and cultural landscapes that remain undocumented. Striker said future documentation efforts will include deploying additional surveys, conducting cemetery inventories, conducting archaeological research, improving GIS mapping and preparing new National Register nominations. She noted that some areas of the county require further examination because some historic sites may have been overlooked in the first preservation plan.
“We have parts of the county that, when the county was surveyed before, there’s a few gaps,” she said. “Verona is a gap that we need to look at. Western Boone County probably needs to be looked at again.”
Lastly, the update establishes a practical implementation framework for the available staff, volunteers and community partners. Priority actions include expanding public outreach, improving preservation data systems, improving strategic partnerships between the board and local organizations and continuing to integrate preservation goals into county planning efforts.
“We want to ensure that Boone County’s preservation tools remain effective long-term. We want to make sure that they evolve with this county and they grow with this county, and so they need to be reassessed periodically,” she said. “This priority also emphasizes providing guidance and clarity to property owners, so preservation requirements are easier to understand and navigate.”
At the conclusion of her presentation, members of the planning commission commended Striker for her work.
“Your passion is beyond reproach,” Chairman Charlie Rolfsen said.
Members of the public can view of the updated ‘Boone County Historic & Heritage Preservation Plan’ below.
