Planning for Arts and Culture: NYC’s Next Chapter

Bob Fisch Presentation Hall, Joyce F. Brown Academic Building, 220 West 28th Street, NY, NY 10001

Arts and culture are the connective tissue of urban life, shaping belonging, identity, and economic vitality. As New York City enters its next chapter, this session examines what we need to be doing to make sure arts, culture, and the people who create it are supported throughout the five boroughs. Cultural planning is both hardware—affordable cultural spaces, production infrastructure, and public realm investment—and software—zoning, funding, and regulatory tools that empower artists and culture bearers.

Featuring the editors of the Routledge Handbook of Urban Cultural Planning, alongside leaders from Lincoln Center, Center for an Urban Future, the New York City Council, and Grantmakers for the Arts, this discussion will connect practitioners, institutions, and policymakers to discuss how to embed culture into equitable development and shape NYC’s next chapter with creativity at its core. Is culture a ​“nice to have,” or essential civic infrastructure? What tools can we use to plan for a thriving culture environment? And what makes New York City different - and similar - from other cultural hubs around the globe?