Dusty Shelf to Digital - Bringing Chicago Landmark reports new life using StoryMaps
Presentation Type: Presentation (60 minutes)
Skill Level: Beginner, Intermediate
Intended Audience: GIS User, Student, Management
Abstract
The City of Chicago’s Landmark Ordinance allows for the designation of individual landmarks and larger districts to preserve their history and protect them from demolition. Public awareness of these landmarks might be limited to glimpsing a bronze plaque in passing with a date of construction, an architect’s name, and a two-sentence summary of a much larger history. The Historic Preservation Division of the City’s Department of Planning and Development conducted a 2-year outreach initiative to better understand the sites and stories Chicagoans felt best represented their communities. Another aspect of that work asked locals how those stories and sites might be celebrated. Feedback emphasized a “meet them where they are” approach, encouraging the City to explore digital platforms.
From there, the City issued a task order request to its pool of consultants to enhance a pre-existing landmarks map using new tools and methods that are both dynamic and user-friendly. The stated target audience was members of the public accessing map content via personal mobile devices while visiting a neighborhood. The result was a first round of StoryMaps that converted hard-copy report documents — some dating to the early 1970s — into mobile-friendly narratives with updated imagery, video clips, and audio recordings of first-person oral histories. By simply repackaging the original research, the project has allowed the City to better disseminate public information and encourage D.I.Y. tours to landmarked sites by bringing engaging StoryMaps to constituents’ fingertips.
Presenter(s)
Eiliesh Tuffy
Coordinating Planner, City of Chicago
Eiliesh Tuffy has 23 years of experience in Historic Preservation and Urban Planning, working in both the non-profit and public sectors. After 6 years as a Program Director with the preservation advocacy group, Landmarks Illinois, she took on government City Planner roles in Cambridge, Massachusetts, San Francisco, California. and now Chicago, Illinois. Eiliesh is one of 8 City staff members in the Historic Preservation Division of the Department of Planning and Development.
Alec Van Patten
Planner, UIC, Master of Urban Planning & Policy Program