(1) In assessing whether the property represents the state's culture and history, and whether the property lends itself to programs to interpret Montana history, the commission shall consider the quality of the significance of the property in Montana history including, but not limited to, the property's authenticity and integrity of location, design, setting, materials, and workmanship; its age; and its aesthetic or historic sense of place or period of time. The commission shall also consider whether the property:

(a) is associated with events that have made a significant contribution to Montana history and prehistory;

(b) is associated with the lives of a person or persons who were significant in Montana history;

(c) embodies distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of construction representing an event, way of life, groups of persons, or trends in Montana history; or

(d) has yielded or is likely to yield information important to Montana history or prehistory.