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ULI Austin COVID Business Outlook
ULI Austin COVID Business Outlook
ULI Austin Celebrates Black History Month
February 4, 2021
Black History Month–a time to both reaffirm and uphold the historical importance, achievement, and influence of the Black community. At ULI, we are dedicated to improving the environments in which all people live, work, and play. Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) are the pillars of sustainable, thriving communities. The calls for racial justice throughout the United States have strengthened our resolve and accelerated our efforts to promote DEI as a fundamental force for creating thriving communities for the future. Read more on Urban Land Magazine.
In celebration of Black History Month, ULI Austin would like to highlight local organizations and initiatives with notable impact on Austin’s Black community.
Photo By Reginald C. Adams, Reflections
The City of Austin Economic Development Department’s African American Cultural and Heritage Facility (AACHF) plays an integral role in the City of Austin’s long-term commitment to protecting and enhancing the quality of life for African Americans.
African American Cultural and Heritage Facility
- Early 2005 – the African American Quality of Life Report reveals African American residents continued to experience a strikingly lower quality of life from other Austin residents.
- October 27, 2005 – City staff worked with community leaders and provided a public presentation to the Austin City Council, which addressed six categories: Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economic Development, Employment & Education, Health, Neighborhood Sustainability, and Police & Safety. The six categories identified 56 initiatives to be implemented by the African American Quality of Life Committee and included a two-year timeline, which began in January 2006.
- November 2006 – Austin residents voted on the 7 General Obligation Bonds. Proposition 4 – $31.5 million tax-supported General Obligation Bonds and Notes for constructing, renovating, improving, and equipping community and cultural facilities including, without limitation, the Zachary Scott Theater, an African American Cultural and Heritage Facility, an Asian American Resource Center, the Austin Film Studios, the Mexican American Cultural Center, a Mexic-Arte Art Museum, and acquiring land and interests in land and property necessary to do so; and the levy of a tax sufficient to pay for the bonds and notes.
Photo By African American Cultural and Heritage Facility, City of Austin
The Dedrick-Hamilton House was owned by Thomas Dedrick, one of the first freed slaves in Travis County. The home was built circa 1880 in one of the earliest African American communities in East Austin. The fully restored historic house now serves as an African American Visitors Center.
- December 13, 2007 – Council approved a resolution to create the City of Austin’s first African American Cultural Heritage District. African American landmarks include black-owned businesses, churches, the George Washington Carver Museum and Cultural Center, Huston-Tillotson University, the African American Cultural and Heritage Facility and more.
- April 2008 – The African American Quality of Life Final Report was published summarizing highlights of the 56 initiatives set forth by the implementation teams of the African American Quality of Life Committee during the two-year period of January 2006 to January 2008.
- March 2009 – construction of the African American Cultural and Heritage Facility began which included renovations to the historical Dedrick-Hamilton House. This $1.5 million bond project paved the way for a new anchor facility that serves three critical functions:
- A small African American Visitors Bureau under the management of the Capital City African American Chamber of Commerce (now known as the Greater Austin Black Chamber of Commerce)
- The main office of ProArts Collective, the primary producer of African American theater and arts festivals
- African American Technical Resource Center.
- March 1, 2013 – the African American Cultural and Heritage Facility had a grand opening celebration including a ceremony honoring individuals featured in Reflections by Reginald C. Adams.
- March 1, 2015 – The African American Cultural and Heritage Facility opened to the public, adding to the area’s cultural significance by offering arts, business, cultural, and entertainment programming.
The Pivot
The Pivot is a live-streamed video podcast featuring topics and discussions about the East Austin community. Learn about current events and how businesses, the creative community, and East Austin residents can foster a collaborative ecosystem. The Pivot airs every first and third Wednesdays at 7:00 p.m. on the AACHF Austin’s Facebook page.
Through the preservation and exhibition of African American material culture, history, and aesthetic expression, the Carver Museum works to create a space where the global contributions of all Black people are celebrated.
We accomplish this by telling stories about our local community and connecting those histories to larger narratives about Blackness.
George Washington Carver Museum, Cultural and Genealogy Center
- 1926 – Austin’s first library established at the corner of Ninth and Guadalupe
- 1933 – Moved to Angelina Street after a larger central library facility was built due to overwhelming demand from patrons. It was then simply known as the “Colored Branch,”
- 1947 – Christened the George Washington Carver Branch Library in honor of the inventor and scientist who brought much pride to African-Americans. For decades, the library’s patronage and book collection grew steadily
- October 24, 1980 – Through the need for larger space and the community’s vision of a museum and community center promoting African-American history and achievement in Austin, it opened its doors as the George Washington Carver Museum and Cultural Center – the first African-American neighborhood museum in Texas
- In a 1998 bond election, Austin citizens voted to further expand both the Carver Museum & Cultural Center and the Carver Branch Library.
- Today, the museum is housed in a 36,000 square-foot facility that includes four galleries, a conference room, classroom, darkroom, dance studio, 134-seat theatre, and archival space. The galleries feature a core exhibit on Juneteenth, a permanent exhibit on Austin African-American families, an Artists’ Gallery, and a children’s exhibit on African-American scientists and inventors.
Mission
The Greater Austin Black Chamber of Commerce (GABC) inspires, develops, and promotes Black economic success in the Greater Austin area.Vision
Serving as a bridge for African-American businesses and the Greater Austin business community to obtain greater prosperity and influence within Central Texas.Greater Austin Black Chamber of Commerce Website
Greater Austin Black Chamber of Commerce
The Greater Austin Black Chamber of Commerce, then the Capital City African American Chamber of Commerce (CCAACC), was incorporated in 1982. Founded by eleven community, political, and business leaders within Austin, the organization was established to bring awareness to the enormous amount of dollars generated from black consumers in the form of travel and tourism within the goal of providing economic prosperity for African-American businesses and the general Greater Austin region.
Support the Greater Austin Black Chamber of Commerce
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Mission
HT nurtures a legacy of leadership and excellence in education, connecting knowledge, power, passion, and values.Vision
A connected world where diversity of thought matters.Huston-Tillotson University Website
Huston-Tillotson University
Tillotson College
- February 10, 1877 – Tillotson Collegiate and Normal Institute was chartered by Reverend George Jeffrey Tillotson. Tillotson was supported and promoted by the Freedmen’s Aid Society of the American Missionary Association of the Congregational churches (now United Church of Christ).
- June 2, 1909 – A new charter was issued and the school was renamed Tillotson College, a “normal school” for the training of teachers for the black community. The school was reorganized in 1925 as a junior college; in 1926 as a women’s college; and again in 1935 as a senior, co-educational institution. Renowned for its departments of education and music, the college received class A accreditation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools in 1943.
Samuel Huston College
- December 1887 – Samuel Huston, a farmer from Marengo, Iowa, donated a farm estimated to be worth $10,000 to support the construction of the school, with the understanding that the school would bear his name.
- 1910 – Samuel Huston College was chartered as a private educational corporation under the laws of Texas. In 1926, it was approved as a senior college by the State of Texas Department of Education, and in 1934 was accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.
Photo By Freedom Solar Power
Huston-Tillotson College and University
- Located only one mile apart in East Austin, the institutions enjoyed healthy competition and rivalry in athletic programs, cooperation in student activities, and collegial relationships among the faculty, staff, and students. However, despite periods of relative prosperity, neither college enjoyed a wealth of material or financial resources.
- January 26, 1952 – Official talks and plans for merging the institutions to expand and increase their resources began
- October 24, 1952 – Trustees of Samuel Huston College and Tillotson College signed a new Charter of incorporation to merge the two institutions on the site (then known as Bluebonnet Hill) of Tillotson College. The merged institution adopted “In union, strength” as its motto.
- Following the merger, Huston-Tillotson College became the sole provider of higher education for African-Americans in Central Texas until the landmark case of Brown v. Board of Education (1954), which launched the period of desegregation.
- Today the College continues to both honor and foster its relationship with its founding denominations as well as its ethnic heritage.
Donate to the HT COVID-19 Support Fund to provide online learning and equipment to approximately 1,100 students!
HT COVID-19 Support Fund
Preserving and Celebrating the historic legacy of the African American community that once thrived in Central East Austin.
Six Square
Six Square – Austin’s Black Cultural District (formerly known as Austin’s African American Cultural Heritage District) is the first black cultural district in the state of Texas and the only cultural arts district in the city of Austin. The organization was created in 2013 as an outgrowth of the City Council’s African American Quality of Life Initiative, which detailed widespread disparities, racial biases, and a decreasing Black population.
Photo By Six Square, Chicon Mural Reveal
The name Six Square derived as a way to build on the authentic history of African Americans in Austin and create our imagined future. As a part of its 1928 plan, the City of Austin forced Black residents to live within a 6-Square mile boundary to maintain segregationist policies. This “Negro District” became the home of Black residents, businesses, schools, and churches and The District birthed the rich heritage and cultural contributions of Austin’s African American community. Honoring this legacy, Six Square engages residents, cultural institutions, and businesses to preserve the past and shape the future of The District. Working with a diverse group of community partners in the arenas of city planning, urban revitalization, and public arts, Six Square has taken the lead on creative placemaking and works to anchor The District as a Black arts & cultural center, strengthen community connections, and improve the economic landscape.
Support Six Square to help mitigate displacement and preserve the legacy of the Black Cultural Arts District of Austin!
Six Square’s Gallery | Historic Tours | Beyond The Square
Musical Explorations | Murals | Preservation