Harlem and the Future – Preserving Culture and Sustaining Historic Character

The 1st Uptown Preservation Conference –

HARLEM AND THE FUTURE: PRESERVING CULTURE & SUSTAINING HISTORIC CHARACTER IN A CHANGING ENVIRONMENT

Saturday, April 29, 2017

9:00 AM – 5:00 PM

 

DUE TO THE HIGH DEMAND FOR TICKETS, THE VENUE HAS BEEN CHANGED TO THE ARONOW THEATRE ON CAMPUS TO ADEQUATELY ACCOMMODATE EVERYONE.

Where: City College of New York – Aronow Theatre located on the first floor in the North Academic Center. (MAP)

Entrance is on Convent Avenue, next to the parking lot , north of the Spitzer School of Architecture, going north on Convent towards 137th Street (on campus)

Cost: $10 includes lunch and a walking tour. Free for students and seniors.

Tickets can be reserved at bit.ly/HarlemTix

More information at www.westharlemcpo.org #westharlemcpo #harlemsfuture

 

Today, what do you think of when you think of Harlem?  Will the future Harlem still resonate its past? Together, we’ll explore this question while reflecting on Harlem’s unique cultural heritage, its built environment, and its social fabric with an eye toward what’s to come. Join us and connect with a larger community that seeks to preserve its cultural and architectural legacies.  An engaging day of dialogue includes keynote speakers, panel discussions, a film screening  titled “Gentrified” and walking tours.

Opening remarks will be given by Manhattan Borough President Gale A Brewer. The keynote speaker Chris Fair of Resonance Consultancy will deliver his speech “The Power of Place”. Michael Henry Adams, who is a local author and architectural historian, will do closing remarks.

 

THE PANELS:

Considering Harlem’s cultural heritage panel, experts will evaluate the cultural brand of Harlem, which has attracted global attention, and reflect on whether it now represents the community as a whole. On the topic of the built environment, panelists will discuss retaining identity and a sense of place, as defined by the physical environment, cultural legacy, and inhabitants, the effectiveness of working with landmarks designation, building community activism and forging private-public partnerships while also adapting to growth and development. And lastly for the community’s social fabric, using the church as a microcosm of a community in transition, leaders from Harlem’s churches will consider how contemporary needs and uses may revitalize and breathe new life into Harlem’s historic church buildings.

 

The Cultural Heritage panel will be moderated by Terrance McKnight, host on WQXR Radio.

Featured panelists include:

Kenneth J. Knuckles, President & CEO, Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone

Karl Franz Williams, CEO & Founder, Good Ice Marketing

Sarah Saltzberg, Co-Founder, Bohemia Realty Group

Eric Pryor, Executive Director, Harlem School of the Arts

 

The Built Environment panel will be moderated by architect Carlton Brown., Architect & Principal, Direct Investment Development, LLC

Featured panelists include:

Chris Cirillo, Lott Community Development

Daniel Marks Cohen, Housing Partnership Development Corporation

Joseph Coppola, AIA Principal, Dattner Architects

Malcolm A. Punter, President & CEO, Harlem Congregations for Community Improvement

 

The Social Fabric panel, focusing on Churches at Risk will be moderated by John T. Reddick, Architectural & Cultural Historian.

Featured panelists include:

Rev. Michael A. Walrond, Jr., Senior Pastor, First Corinthian Baptist Church

Rev. Reginald Bachus, Associate Pastor of Abyssinian Baptist Church

Ann-Isabel Friedman, Sacred Sites Program, NYC Landmarks Conservancy

Rev. Donna Schaper, Senior Minister, Judson Memorial Church

 

CONFERENCE SPONSORS include West Harlem Community Preservation Organization, Historic Districts Council, City Council Member Mark Levine, Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, The City College of New York, SAVE Harlem Now! The New York City Landmarks Conservancy, Mount Morris Park Community Improvement Association, Landmark West!, Manhattan Community Boards 9 and 10, The Audubon Park Alliance. Harlem Business Alliance, Harlem Congregations for Community Improvement, Harlem One Stop, WE ACT Environmental Justice, West Harlem Development Corporation

Funded in part by Historic District Council and City Council Member Mark Levine

 

ABOUT WEST HARLEM COMMUNITY PRESERVATION ORGANIZATION

Founded in 1996, West Harlem Community Preservation Organization is a non-profit grassroots volunteer organization which seeks to bring together the many and varied community organizations–to resolve issues, advocate for public services, and celebrate our unique and diverse community in West Harlem. www.westharlemcpo.org

 

ABOUT HISTORIC DISTRICTS COUNCIL

The Historic District Council’s mission is to ensure the preservation of significant historic neighborhoods, buildings and public spaces in New York City, uphold the integrity of New York City’s Landmarks Law, and further the preservation ethic. They work directly with people who care about our city’s historic neighborhoods and buildings, and represent a constituency of over 500 local community organizations across all five boroughs. West Harlem’s, Hamilton Heights is pleased to have been chosen this year as one the Council’s, “Six to Save,” historic communities. www.hdc.org