The learning objectives for this session were:
1. Participants will learn about the challenges of preserving a unique housing complex of the recent past—including the retention and repair of its original materials and features—while also introducing code-required elements, “green” features and other updates.
2. Participants will discover the history of this singular example of modern architecture and the intended social goal of creating a diverse, self-sustaining community.
3. Participants will learn how the complex’s residents—Somali immigrants—worked tirelessly to preserve and upgrade the neighborhood to serve its inhabitants.
4. Participants will learn how the efforts of the public and private parties involved with this project—including the owner, the residents, the city and the National Register of Historic Places that took a risk listing such a modern property—can serve as a model of collaboration for saving historic properties that otherwise might be overlooked.