At a public event at the Union Grove Baptist Church on the Near East Side neighborhood of Columbus, the Center for Urban and Regional Analysis (CURA) teamed up with the Sharpe Field Library to demonstrate the 3D urban models of historically Black neighborhoods being created by CURA’s Ghost Neighborhoods of Columbus project. CURA is developing these 3D models to give people an immersive and visceral feeling of what Black neighborhoods were like before highway construction, disinvestment due to redlining and urban renewal projects. Participants were able to experience a VR simulation of Poindexter Village in 1940, and interacted with the model of Mt. Vernon Ave in 1951 on iPads. Participants also provided some very valuable feedback on the model interfaces, and the historical authenticity of the representations.
The Ohio History Connection organized the event to highlight plans for a new Columbus African American history museum, opening in February 2028. CURA’s 3D models will be featured in the museum. Harvey Miller, Jordan Swaim-Fox, Karyn Kerdolff, Summer Ha (CURA) and Adam Tjoelker (Sharpe Field Library) were at the event.
