The City of San Antonio will host its second World Heritage Symposium this Saturday, Dec. 5, and this time around officials expect to do less talking and more listening.
The first symposium in October featured an informational panel discussion with key players in the bid for World Heritage status for the five Spanish colonial missions. A lively Q&A session followed. Saturday’s event will be held at the STEM High School in the Harlandale Independent School District (4040 Apollo Rd.) and the public can engage in more hands-on workshops and discussions with each other and decision makers involved in the planning process.
The City has begun to formulate short-term and long-term development guidelines for the missions and surrounding neighborhoods.
Click here to download an outline of the City’s World Heritage Work Plan.
During two breakout sessions on Saturday, participants can choose between three distinct areas of interest related to World Heritage development: small business development, marketing, and infrastructure and way-finding.
The schedule for Saturday’s free event:
9 a.m. – Open House
Opportunity for input into each of the topics through a simple survey; oral history or storytelling component.
9:45 a.m. – Introduction and Overview
10 a.m. – Session 1
(Attendees choose one of three topics).
10:45 a.m. – Break
11 a.m. – Session 2
(Attendees choose one of three.)
11:45 a.m. – Report Out
Facilitators report out on major points from both sessions as a wrap up.
A third symposium the City is planning for Feb. 6 will focus on sensitive land use and development – perhaps the most hotly debated issue surrounding the World Heritage designation.
The Alliance for San Antonio Missions, a grassroots organization of Southside residents that are calling for a moratorium on development near the missions, will host its third forum discussion on Sunday, Jan. 17, 2016 that “will provide an informational update and focus on the questions about World Heritage designation and development that our local communities think are most urgent.”
The forum will start at 4 p.m. at the Mission Branch Library (3134 Roosevelt Ave.).
Details about the Alliance’s January forum will be updated as the date approaches. Its most recent roundtable panel discussion explored the “intangible cultural heritage” that UNESCO recognized at the historic sites.
*Top image: Cyclists lock up their bikes in front of Mission Concepción. Photo by Iris Dimmick.
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City Convenes First World Heritage Symposium
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