Legacy City Preservation 3: What Kind of City Do We Want?

Summer 2018 in Buffalo

Mark your calendar for the third national Legacy City Preservation conference, which will be held in Buffalo in summer 2018. More details to come.

Past Events

PastForward/National Preservation Conference

Nov. 15-18, 2016 in Houston

PRN again participated in the PastForward conference, bringing a legacy city perspective to this year’s lineup in Houston. PRN members spoke about the Action Agenda and the first local pilot project in Detroit, and how both relate to national and local preservation movements.

Reclaiming Vacant Properties

Sept. 28-30, 2016 in Baltimore

PRN members spoke in two sessions at this year’s Reclaiming Vacant Properties conference. One session focused on social innovations that are transforming hard-hit neighborhoods; the other addressed the critical topic of replicable approaches to rehab and preservation.

Neighborhoods in America’s Legacy Cities: A Dialogue in Detroit

Sept. 13-16, 2016 in Detroit

PRN members spoke in a variety of sessions featuring the Action Agenda, innovative survey models, and middle neighborhoods in legacy cities. This conference continued the important conversation begun in Cleveland in 2014 with the Historic Preservation in America’s Legacy Cities convening, and PRN was pleased to be a cosponsor. Learn more here.

PRN also organized a half-day pre-conference workshop focused on transforming intangible heritage into inclusive economic development; the workshop was held in collaboration with Live6 and the Legacy Cities Partnership.

New Jersey History + Historic Preservation Conference

June 8-9, 2016 in South Orange, NJ

PRN members provided an overview of the Action Agenda and its applicability to legacy cities, plus examples of successful preservation-based revitalization efforts from around the country, particularly anchor institutions.

Action Agenda Webinar

May 31, 2016 online

Cara Bertron and Nick Hamilton provided a quick orientation to the groundbreaking framework of the Action Agenda. The webinar also included discussion of how the Action Agenda can be used in a variety of communities to build partnerships and shape new and ongoing initiatives. Watch the archived webinar here! (Free registration is required.)

RevitalizeWA

April 26, 2016 in Chelan, WA

PRN chair Cara Bertron spoke at a plenary session on how the Action Agenda’s central principles are applicable to a broad range of communities, from high-growth cities to smaller Main Street communities and rural areas.

California Preservation Conference

April 19, 2016 in San Francisco, CA

A lively panel discussed the challenge of vacancy and abandonment in older and historic areas, along with relevant tools outside the traditional preservation lexicon. Speakers included leadership team members Cara Bertron and Emilie Evans, as well as Maggie Smith from Page & Turnbull (also a PRN volunteer!).

New Partners for Smart Growth

February 13, 2016 in Portland, OR

The PRN organized a session around Building on Our Assets: Data-Based Approaches to Community-Powered Revitalization. We were excited to feature Aaron Bartley from PUSH Buffalo and Prashant Singh from LocalData as speakers, as well as PRN leadership team members Nick Hamilton, Emilie Evans, and Cara Bertron. The session was split between a conference room and a nearby neighborhood for data collection and discussion in the field.

Legacy City Preservation: A National Conversation on Innovation + Practice

December 8, 2015 in Newark, NJ

More than 200 people joined us in Newark for a memorable celebration of the  Action Agenda for Historic Preservation in Legacy Cities. The free public event drew professionals, academics, and community members from 12 states and included PechaKucha-style speakers, hard-hat tours of the Hahne’s building rehabilitation, refreshments, and superlative company. Read the Action Agenda and check out event photos and press now!

PastForward/National Preservation Conference

November 3-6, 2015 in Washington, DC

The PRN held a network meetup where more than 30 participants discussed cutting-edge programs and policies for potential inclusion in the PRN Toolkit. PRN members also spoke at multiple conference sessions.

New Partners for Smart Growth

January 29-31, 2015 in Baltimore

The PRN sponsored a tour of the Union Square-Hollins Market Historic District and discussion on data-driven preservation as part of the New Partners for Smart Growth conference in Baltimore on February 1.

PastForward/National Preservation Conference

November 11-15, 2014 in Savannah

The PRN hosted an informal gathering for legacy city preservationists and allies at the PastForward National Preservation Conference in Savannah in November. Participants discussed current issues and in-progress projects of the PRN.

Historic Preservation in America’s Legacy Cities: An Interdisciplinary Convening

June 5-7, 2014 in Cleveland

The Cleveland Restoration Society and the Levin College of Urban Affairs at Cleveland State University convened an interdisciplinary meeting to discuss the role of historic preservation in revitalizing America’s legacy cities. The event provided an opportunity to cross-collaborate, share ideas, and devise solutions with the goals of launching a more integrated approach to planning for the future of legacy cities, bringing historic preservation into urban policymaking, and crafting a 21st-century preservation profession that is responsive to the needs and conditions of legacy cities. Preservationists, community developers, economic developers, urban planners, urban policymakers, urban designers, and others formed a diverse group of participants.

The Preservation Rightsizing Network was a co-sponsor of the convening and helped to organize the closing workshop of the event. A summary of proceedings from the workshop is available here.

Preservation Rightsizing Network Affinity Session

November 1, 2013 at the National Preservation Conference, Indianapolis

The second meeting of the Preservation Rightsizing Network was held at the National Preservation Conference in Indianapolis. In a packed hour, participants shared ideas and good practices and discussed draft goals and principles for the network.

Right Size, Right Place Forum

September 11, 2013 in Philadelphia

The Right Size, Right Place Forum was a half-day meeting on September 11, 2013, that followed the Reclaiming Vacant Properties Conference in Philadelphia. The forum convened a diverse group of preservation advocates, planners, land bank officials, and others working in legacy cities to discuss ways that preservation can be involved in long-range asset-based planning, compare field notes, and share best practices.

Catch up with what happened here: