Studio Report Celebrating Buffalo’s Cultural Diversity: A Vision for the Michigan Street Heritage Corridor Prepared by: SUNY Buffalo Department of Urban and Regional Planning Spring Planning Studio 2011 Acknowledgements The students of the Urban Planning Studio Project from the University of Buffalo Spring 2011 would like to thank all of those who have taken time to meet with us and share their thoughts, but would also llike to especially acknowledge the following for their contribution to our Michigan Street Heritage Corridor project. Special thanks to: • The Michigan Street Heritage Corridor Commission • Ms. Karen Stanley- Fleming, The Michigan Heritage Corridor Commission • Mr. Larry Rubin, The Michigan Street Heritage Corridor Commission • Mr. George Arthur, The Michigan Street Heritage Corridor Commission • Ms. Cynthia Van Ness, MLS - The Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society • Mr. Chris Hawley, City of Buffalo Office of Strategic Planning • Mr. John Fell, City of Buffalo Office of Strategic Planning • Ms. Susan Eager, Director of Plant Operations – Buffalo Schools • Mr. Andrew Rabb, Deputy Commissioner, Dept. of Public Works, City of Buffalo • Mr. Tom Mead, Associate Landscape Architect - Buffalo Olmsted Parks Conservancy • Dean Robert Shibley, UB School of Architecture and Planning • Dr. Henry Louis Taylor Jr. Director, Center of Urban Studies, University at Buffalo • Mr. Alfred D. Price, Associate Professor, UB School of Architecture and Planning • Mr. Paul Ray, The Urban Design Project, University at Buffalo • Mr. Bradshaw Hovey, The Urban Design Project, Univrsity at Buffalo • Dr. Ernest Sternberg, Professor and Interim Chair, UB School of Architecture and Planning • Dr. Robert Silverman, Associate Professor UB School of Architecture and Planning • Ms. Dorothy and Michael Hill of the Langston Hughes Institute • Ms. Desiree Valdez and Ink Martyr Graphics • Dr. Ramzi Farhat, Visiting Assistant Professor, University at Buffalo (Studio Director) Studio Participants: Carmen Acevedo, Bianca Acevedo, Joe Boone, Sarah Culligan, Jack Daugherty, Cristina Delgado, Deandra Dunn, Megan Hathaway, Elizabeth Heinz, Troy Joseph, Shalmali Kulkarni, Melanie Shorey, Kadek Sulasmini Cover Image: Sanborn Maps 1914-1925 http://sanborn.umi.com/ny/5793/dateid-000010. htm?CCSI=2078n 1: Introduction: 4 Structure of the Report 8 2: History 11 Underground Railroad and Buffalo 13 Civil Rights in Buffalo 13 Jazz Age in Buffalo 15 Multicultural Buffalo 17 The East Side: Vibrant Working Class Community 18 The East Side: Witness to the Evolution of Planning 19 Portrait of a Neighborhood 22 Resources - Political Life 30 3: Assets & Resources 30 Contents Historic Resources – Social and Cultural Life 37 The Jazz Era 39 Social Life 40 Resources – Residential and Occupational Life 41 Current Demographic Overview 43 Land Use, Property Ownership, and Vacant Lands 46 Historic Structures Inventory 50 Public Space: Parks & Recreation Areas 68 Contemporary African American Programming 74 Regional Resources 79 4:Goals & Objectives 85 Themes and Subthemes 87 5:Physical Development 88 Streetscape Enhancements 90 Complete Streets 93 Public Space in the District 98 Stewardship 99 6:Tourism Development 117 Heritage Tours 119 District Identity 123 Promotional Strategies 129 Museum/Info Center 133 7: Community & Economic Development 139 Michigan Avenue Historic Heritage District In-fill Housing Program 141 Cultural Development Organization 144 Healthy Communities by Block 147 Michigan Street Heritage Corridor Association 153 Mrs. Nash’s Victory Garden 159 Business Improvement District 164 8: Looking Forward 170 9: Appendix 171 1: Introduction: Background Stewardship Image: Michigan Ave Baptist Church http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/ WM1J5C_Michigan_Avenue_Baptist_Church_ Buffalo_NY Background The Michigan Street African American Heritage Corridor is a culturally significant place with a rich history for both the African-American community and the greater Buffalo-Niagara region. The area is known for its contributions to the Underground Railroad, the abolitionist movement, the Jazz Age, and Civil Rights movement. Densely inhabited by both African Americans and immigrants from all over the world, the district was once a thriving and vibrant center of cultural and economic activity in the first half of the 20th century. People of different ethnic backgrounds lived side-by-side and at times even shared homes with multiple families of different cultures under one roof. Many forces came into play that would serve as the main drivers behind the physical decay and depopulation of the Heritage Corridor. The decline of Buffalo’s importance as an industrial center, the greater deindustrialization of America, segregation and the sprawl of the Buffalo region resulting from housing market changes were all factors that led to decreased economic activity and population in the area. Much of the economic activity that was taking place in these structures was either directly related to industrial production, or was money being spent on services that had been earned from the abundant industrial jobs. When these industrial jobs began to dry up it meant idle factories in the neighborhood and less money for the residents who had worked in the factories to spend in their neighborhood. The commodification of the pg. 4 Chapter: 1 INTRODUCTION Introduction: Background housing market would be a main driver for the sprawl and depopulation of the urban core in the post WW II period. The late 1960s, a turbulent period for the entire nation, also contributed in sealing the fate of the neighborhood. The violent disturbances of the summer of 1967 severely disrupted areas around William and Jefferson Street, ultimately serving to further racially divide the neighborhood and cause remaining whites to flee for good. These forces combined to severely decrease economic activity in the area and cause a decline that would continue for decades (Goldman, 1983). While many of the important structures and institutions from the previous era may not have survived, their historic significance retains a powerful reminder of the area’s wider influence on the region and culture at large. Located in the heart of Buffalo’s present day Ellicott District, just east of the downtown core, the area boasts an ideal location between Buffalo’s most active growth centers. To the south are the Waterfront, Cobblestone and Larkin Districts, to the north the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, and to the west downtown is located less than a half mile away. It is uniquely situated on the radial grid of the original Ellicott Plan and has been featured in it Buffalo’s Comprehensive Plan, rightfully so given its significant past, as a focus area for redevelopment. In the past, proximity to the downtown central business district has had unfortunate relationships for the corridor and surrounding Ellicott District. When the urban core declined due to what a planner from the era called “changes in American living habits which revolutionized post-war retailing…(due to)…individual mobility and the automobile”, urban living was disfavored by the middle and upper classes. In the post WW II period there was a strong desire to reverse the trend of decline in the central urban core as negative attention was directed to nearby areas that were perceived as “blighted”. Combined with the redlining practices of banks that limited available funds for improvements, restrictive zoning and declining employment, the district and surrounding neighborhoods became a target of slum clearance. Urban renewal and Federal Highway Act projects would demolish significant amounts of the surrounding neighborhood fabric and decimated the residential and commercial vitality of the district. In the interim period, waves of government subsidized housing developments created a unique mix of housing stock modeled after suburban style homes and apartments which often did not aim to preserve the historic character of the area. However, in 1996 the Michigan Street Preservation Corporation (MSPC), a not-for-profit organization, was established and designated by the City of Buffalo as the responsible party for promoting a historic preservation program for the Michigan Street area. Its primary tasks were to recognize and promote the heritage of the City of Buffalo, and transition this historic area into a heritage corridor, by “promoting programs and activities for the restoration, education, research, and economic development of historic properties in the area.” The MSPC’s primary project was the restoration of the Rev. J. Edward Nash house at 36 Nash St., for which it gained title to in 1999. Following the acquisition of the Nash House, the MSPC put forth the Michigan Street Urban Design Plan, which would establish a museum for visitors within the Nash House, and would redevelop other historic properties within the heritage area. This plan was the impetus of the Michigan Street African American Heritage Corridor Commission. The Michigan Street Preservation Corporation became incorporated, and shortly after applying in January 2010, both the MSPC and the Colored Musicians Club obtained the 501(c)(3) tax exemption status. In early 2007, the historic preservation area legislation was introduced to recognize the area as a heritage corridor. Chapter 595 (Laws of New York 2007) was signed into law on August 15, 2007 and amended the parks, recreation and historic preservation law, to designate the Michigan Street African American Heritage Corridor in Buffalo as a state heritage