Court Restricts Preservation Group on Donated Easements

A federal court on Monday ordered a preservation organization and its founder to stop misleading owners of historic properties about possible tax breaks for donating the front of historic structures to charity, Dow Jones Newswires says.

According to a government complaint, Steven McClain and the Trust for Architectural Easements, in Washington, falsely told hundreds of property owners in Baltimore, Boston, New York, and Washington that they could claim large deductions for such “facade easements” and collected fees for processing the donations.

The easement deduction is meant to compensate owners who give up the chance to boost their property’s value by improving the facade. But the government said many of those advised by Mr. McClain lived in historic districts that already barred such alterations.

The trust agreed to the injunction but did not admit any wrongdoing.