Public meeting to solicit input for the future African American Cultural Heritage Facility on E. 11th St.

For immediate release
May 2, 2008

The public is invited to hear and comment on a staff presentation that will highlight development options for the future African American Cultural Heritage Facility at the May 7 meeting of the African American Resource Advisory Commission.

The vision for the African American Cultural Heritage Facility was initiated through the City of Austin African American Quality of Life Initiative. The vision, created by the community and the Commission, calls for this facility to serve as an anchor and gateway to the planned African American Cultural District that was recently created by the Austin City Council.

Funded through the 2006 Bond Election, the $1.5 million African American Cultural Heritage Facility will house a visitor’s center, offices for the Capital City African American Chamber of Commerce and ProArts Collective and cultural amenities. The project site is located at 912 E. 11th St., the site of the Detrick-Hamilton House, the first house owned by a freed slave in Austin.