#community-preservation

#community-preservation

On top of devastating losses and rebuilding and insurance claim headaches, survivors of the 2025 Los Angeles County firestorms have faced an increasingly existential threat to their communities: large investment firms buying up burned lots, which many worry will forever change the fabric of their treasured neighborhoods.

For two centuries, from the mid-1600s to the mid-1800s, free and enslaved New Yorkers of African descent were buried at the Harlem African Burial Ground. Over time, the history of this site was lost - erased by the subsequent redevelopment of the land. Today, the Harlem African Burial Ground project is a community-driven vision to honor and memorialize this historic site with a new outdoor memorial and indoor cultural education center, while also addressing affordable housing and jobs needs in the East Harlem community.

When Donna Guardino passed away at age 81 this past April, artists and fans alike mourned the extraordinary woman who created not only an artistic community, but also brought together a troubled Northeast Portland neighborhood. They also wondered what would become of her eponymous gallery, a landmark destination at the corner of NE Alberta Street and NE 30 th Avenue since 1997.

You are invited for an evening with the people who helped preserve the beautiful Martha Property in Tiburon. Join Marin Green Drinks this October 14, 2025, with Jerry Riessen of the Tiburon Open Space Committee and Erica Williams from the Trust for Public Land. Discover the passion and dedication behind this decades-long effort. If you appreciate nature and the work of those who help to protect it, this event is for you.

Have you ever wondered what to do with the piles of Advocate or Out magazines you've collected through the years? Or swag you've collected at Pride events that you keep in storage boxes in closets? What about those ticket stubs to Melissa Etheridge concerts you kept religiously? LGBTQ+ archives throughout the country seek to create a home for those artifacts to help preserve queer history.

Three years ago, with development plans looming, The Golden Skate's owner Hassan Sharifi vowed to remain open indefinitely after receiving an overwhelming outpouring of support for one of the last two roller rinks in Contra Costa County and the greater East Bay. By that time, the 3.5-acre property had already been in limbo for two years after San Ramon's Planning Commission approved Sharifi's pitch for Windflower Fields, a 47-townhome development in eight three-story buildings on his land near Interstate 680 and the Diablo mountain range.

The Most Holy Redeemer Church, designed in German Baroque style and completed in 1851, has served as a community center for East Village Catholics and a New York architectural landmark.

"I've always believed that design isn't just about how something looks, it's about how it works in people's lives."

For loyal area residents, however, a restoration seemed to be a way to keep longtime residents on the neighborhood's narrow streets, and a new name was one of the first steps.

The goal is to think about the future of our city and what kind of community we want to be. I believe that we need to be a city that has housing opportunities for our middle-class workers.

"I started out in spaces like this as a young actor here in New York City... where you could come and work out your talent, where it wasn't really expensive."

The room that housed the gym where Louis trained remains in the building's basement. But the center had become so dilapidated that it faced a wrecking ball about a decade ago, Mayor Mike Duggan said.

The situation with APE's evictions highlights a clash of interests between a prominent entertainment company and the longstanding local businesses that form the neighborhood's character.

Alan Selwyn, planning lead at the Belsize Society, expressed delight that the pub's significance has been recognized, aiming to collaborate with owners for community benefits.