Beyond Buildings: Let’s Preserve Memory, Culture in Philadelphia | Broad, Germantown, and Erie

City of Philadelphia

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With Treasure Philly! The Philadelphia Historical Commission staff want to document and protect more than just buildings

A new way to preserve Philadelphia’s history is in the works. On August 22 the Philadelphia Historical Commission will launch Treasure Philly! The program is a first-of-its-kind effort to uncover and protect stories, traditions, and places that the current historic preservation process overlooks.

Treasure Philly! will rely on community engagement through workshops, public meetings, and interviews. This pilot project will survey the neighborhoods surrounding the Broad, Germantown and Erie intersection. Treasure Philly! program managers selected this area because of related work around infrastructure improvements at the intersection for the Broad, Germantown and Erie Project.

“Treasure Philly’s goal is to work with neighbors to identify and preserve the cultural history of this area,” said Anne Fadullon, Director of the Department of Planning and Development. “There is certainly a lot of history in the buildings in and around Broad, Germantown and Erie. There is also history in people’s stories, memories and traditions that needs to be preserved, too.”

“We want to recognize the people that make neighborhoods special. Every neighborhood has stories passed down through generations, beloved local business, and traditions that define Philadelphia,” said Shannon Garrison, Treasure Philly! program manager and Historic Preservation Planner for the Philadelphia Historical Commission. “This pilot is the first step in our efforts to expand the ways we support and celebrate the rich histories of every neighborhood.”

The first community meeting will be held on August 22 from 6 to 8 p.m. at Zion Baptist Church (3600 N Broad St). Residents from neighborhoods around the Broad, Germantown, Erie intersection are encouraged to attend.

This project comes from the 2019 recommendations of the Mayor’s Task Force on Historic Preservation. The Philadelphia Historical Commission worked with The ROZ Group, Little Giant Creative, and Partners for Sacred Places to develop Treasure Philly!

For more information and to RSVP to the community meeting, visit phlpreservation.org

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