Link to Interactive Website Created Specifically for The East St. Louis Historical, Arts and Cultural Asset Mapping Project and for Digital Citizenship: www.CreativeExchangeLab.com/ESTL

‘National Endowment for The Arts’ (NEA) announces on 20th July, 2015: Creative Exchange Lab (CEL) to receive a ‘National Endowment for The Arts’ award titled ‘Our Town’ for it’s proposal to develop a revitalization plan with the residents of one East St. Louis neighborhood that will utilize culture and the arts as catalyst for a sustainable, inclusive, economic development, together with it’s primary partners The City of East St. Louis and Harris Stowe University (HSSU).  

A Strategic Framework Plan for an Art and Cultural District was also developed, in partnership with East ST. Louis Arts and Cultural partners, East St. Louis’s community, Stakeholders, and the City of East St. Louis, to celebrate East St. Louis’s unique cultural assets: House of Miles Davis, Katherine Dunham Center for Humanities, Jacky Joyner Kersee Foundation (just to mention a few).  

VISION STATEMENT

“By 2025, East St. Louis, Illinois, will be a cultural arts destination where residents and visitors not only see, hear, learn and celebrate the city’s rich, multilayered history and culture, but that the residents participate, contribute and economically benefit from the cultural assets within the community.”  

Framework Plan for an Arts and Cultural District + Corridor

STL LIVE interview on CEL’s NEA Award titled ‘Our Town’: Arts & Cultural Assessment of East St. Louis (IL.), and a Strategic Framework Plan for Equitable, Sustainable Economic Development

August 16, 2016 By Editor

STL LIVE SHOW DATE: August 15, 2016 – CEL Architecture & Planning Studio Proposal for East St Louis
HOST: Raynah Rey

Recently Creative Exchange Lab took a cultural assets assessment of East St. Louis to develop an economic strategy that could lead to more development. My guests today are Executive Director of Creative Exchange Lab, Jasmin Aber and Joanna Dee Das…
Guest: Jasmin Aber/ Executive Director, Creative Exchange Lab
Guest: Joanna Dee Das, PhD/Katherine Dunham Expert
CEL Center for Architecture + Design Stl/ A Cultural Corridor and strategic plan for East St. Louis/ this NEA ‘Our Town’ project and its cultural asset mapping will unfold over 2016 and 2017/ Locations will vary/ CreativeExchangeLab.com/ 314-256-9317
In 2015, Creative Exchange Labs was awarded a National Endowment of the Arts grant for its proposal to map the cultural assets of East St. Louis. The cultural-led economic strategy takes the long view of developing a unique plan for the community of East St. Louis City that utilizes its landmarks to boost economic development. From July to October, Creative Exchange Labs will host a series of talks that highlight these assets. Visit creativeexchangelab.com for dates, times and locations.

Framework Plan for an Arts and Cultural District + Corridor