Freedmen's Town Preservation Coalition

The Freedmen's Town Coalition is petitioning the City of Houston to use preservative rather than restorative methods when revamping historic Andrews and Wilson Streets in Freedman’s Town/Fourth Ward. The coalition's goal is to:

1. Stop the removal of the undisturbed historic bricks and the remaining trolley rails, from all of Andrews Street and part of Wilson Street.

2. Engage a qualified micro-

tunneling/trenchless Engineering Design firm to redesign the infrastructure installations for “avoidance of harm to the cultural resources” of the historic streets- NHPAct.

3. Reinstate the Federal 106 Review process for the amended plans and engage the appropriate “Consulting Parties” from the broader community, African Diaspora Archaeologists, Historians, and Anthropologists from the beginning to end of the process.

4. Install all new infrastructures for sani-sewer lines, water, and electric lines under sidewalk easements instead of under the streets with multiple lines and connections that will fail. Installation combinations of micro-tunneling, and other trenchless methods must be used in order to prevent the removal of bricks and trolley rails as well as to remediate flooding due to the high density new construction within Freedmen’s Town.

5. Use the best preservation practices for repairing the damaged sections of the streets, according to the UNESCO and National Trust’s guidelines for Historic Preservation in this rare National Register Historic District. Use non-chemical methods to clean asphalt from bricks while in place; such as, Polar Blast; environmentally friendly and efficient. For more information email us at [email protected] or call 713-739-0163. FOLLOW US ON
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