I was a guest on a recent edition of the OSU Arts and Sciences Voices of Excellence podcast, hosted by Prof. David Staley. In this podcast, we talk about CURA’s Ghost Neighborhoods of Columbus project which uses AI, machine learning, and GIS to extract data from historic Sanborn fire insurance maps and construct 3D virtual models of neighborhoods that have been altered or destroyed by urban renewal, highway construction, and redlining.
Historical
Ghost Neighborhoods at Juneteenth Jubilee
The Center for Urban and Regional Analysis (CURA) participated in the 2025 Juneteenth Jubilee at the Ohio History Connection. We displayed 3D digital reconstructions of Poindexter Village in 1940 and Mt Vernon Avenue in 1951 from our Ghost Neighborhoods of Columbus project. These reconstructions will be featured in the forthcoming Poindexter Village African American Museum, opening in 2028.
Harvey Miller (Director), Gavin Levine (Undergraduate Research Associate) and Jordan Swaim-Fox (Outreach Coordinator) at the CURA table
The kids really dug the VR experience of our 3D models!
