National Heritage Areas include nationally significant resources. They are designated to preserve an important aspect of America 's past and share it with visitors. Based on partnerships, Heritage Areas provide opportunities for a broad range of constituents to work together to achieve a shared vision for the future of an area. National Heritage Areas are not living theme parks seeking to freeze places in time. They aim instead to preserve their special natural and historic places as part of their communities' social and economic future. The challenge of any National Heritage Area is to successfully merge the past and the future.

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