Jane’s Walks are held each year to honor the memory of urbanist Jane Jacobs who set out to defend cities from the attacks of senseless destruction of revered neighborhoods. During her lifetime, Jacobs got people to rethink what a neighborhood was, what it could be, and what it should be. You might say that she was the antithesis of Robert Moses, whose claim to fame was ramming highways through the hearts of cities.
Each year, in early May, cities all over the world salute Jacobs, by hosting Jane’s Walks. Last year, for some reason, Buffalo was left out in the cold, because a Walk was never held (unlike previous years). But this year, thanks to Vision Niagara, the Walk is back. On Sunday, May 5, the organization will host the two following Walks:
Walk #1 – Evolution of Niagara Street | Grace Andriette & Barbara Rowe
We’ll discuss the industrial and cultural history of Niagara Street, highs and lows, as well as the recent resurgence and how that affects our neighborhood, e.g. gentrification. We’ll start at Broderick Park, stop for refreshing kombucha at Bootleg Bucha and finish up with a brew at Resurgence Brewery. No need to register! Just show up for a lively walk. Approximately 2 hour walk.
Walk #2 – Peace Walk Discovery Trail | Will Peck
Sunday, May 5th @ 2:00 pm. Approximately 1.5 hours (leisurely walk with about 6 stops)
Meeting Point: North end of Broderick Park near the fish consumption signage, @ the Riverwalk connection.
Come and experience the Peace Walk Discovery Trail, a new public mosaic art project on Unity Island along Buffalo’s Shoreline Trail. Only a few minutes west of and parallel to Niagara Street runs the newly improved shoreline trail north, along the Niagara River. This mosaic art project won the City of Buffalo’s competition in 2016 and was realized in 2017. Learn about some of the local history of that stretch between Broderick Park and Unity Island Park, how it was a last stop of the UGRR, how Native Americans interacted with the island. Hear about artist Cornelia Dohse-Peck’s vision for Peace Walk Discovery Trail, the symbols used and how this public art project came to be.
Walk will be led by Will Peck, collaborator and husband, who also worked on this public art commission.
Learn about upcoming events in the Niagara Street Corridor by subscribing to the Facebook event feed and via invitation through the Vision Niagara newsletter.
Who was Jane Jacobs, you might ask?
It’s amazing to see the variety of walks and topics that happen around the world. Would you be interested in leading a Jane’s Walk in your neighborhood? Contact info@visionniagara.org – Vision Niagara will help you to set up the walk, and even get the word out there for you!
Learn more by visiting visionniagara.org/special-events