View this email in your browser ([link removed])
Welcoming Our New Development Director, Kurt Feichtmeir
The Living New Deal welcomes Kurt Feichtmeir who will serve as our new Development Director. Prior to joining the Living New Deal, Kurt was Director of Extended Learning for the San Francisco Exploratorium. His work with the Exploratorium spanned more than three decades, during which time he led the museum's publishing program, and developed education programs for learners of all ages. He has lived and worked in Colombia and has a background in international business. At the Living New Deal, he will be working to improve our planning, expand our funding base, and widen our audience across the United States. A graduate of the University of California, Berkeley, Kurt currently lives in Portland OR.
Where in the World is Evan: Bangor PA
Evan Kalish, the Living New Deal’s Researcher at Large, has traveled to Pennsylvania in search of more New Deal sites. He has discovered a fascinating New Deal vestige: a beautifully restored fragment of the Bangor PA Municipal Pool ([link removed]) . Built by the Works Progress Administration, the pool was one of the few above-ground public pools built in the United States. The Art Deco, cement plaster architectural elements with brick insets are unique for this area and more commonly encountered in the Western and Southwestern United States. The above-ground design with bathhouses underneath was developed by Wesley Bintz of Lansing, MI. This configuration offered a cost savings of 25% to 40%, which made it an attractive solution for small cities impacted by the Great Depression. Construction started in 1936 and the pool opened on May 27, 1939. The pool was in service until the 1990s, when it was closed due to structural deterioration. The pool was
demolished in 1996, but a wall segment that used to serve as the original entrance was preserved along with the original WPA plaque.

Benefit Party to Preserve the George Washington Murals
On Tuesday, Oct. 17, 5:30 - 8:30 PM, the Specs Bar in San Francisco will host an event ([link removed]) in support of the preservation of the embattled George Washington High School Murals. The event is free and donations are welcome. The fight to save the murals has been widely covered in the media, with many prominent voices calling for preservation, including Sen. Dianne Feinstein, former mayor Willie Brown, and actor Danny Glover. Robin D.G. Kelley, a major African-American scholar and critic of racism, argued ([link removed]) for using the murals as an educational tool about white supremacy and democracy, instead of wasting precious school funds on covering
the murals. Please consider joining our campaign to save the murals and come to the Oct. 17 event.
Effort Underway to Save Laguna Beach Treatment Plant
A group of Laguna Beach residents have brought to our attention that the city’s New Deal era, sewage digester building at the Laguna Beach Treatment Plant could be demolished. The Laguna Beach City Council has announced ([link removed]) that it will not allocate funds to rehabilitate the deteriorating 1930s structure, and that demolition is the probable outcome. Located at the entrance to town, the Spanish Revival building has become an unlikely landmark and part of the city’s identity. The structure is listed on Laguna’s historic register because of its architectural significance. Many residents are supporting its renovation and adaptive reuse and are urging City Council members to convert the building into a facility that can be rented to a small business. However, council members voted in favor of demolition due to insufficient funding. The city plans to use
the lot for parking. Many New Deal structures across the United States are threatened with demolition, either due to lack of public funding for upkeep or due to intensified pressure for development ([link removed]) .

------------------------------------------------------------

============================================================
* Recorded in 1932 by Don Redman and His Orchestra, with the assistance of Bill Robinson, "** Doin' the New Low Down ([link removed])
" was a hit record in the year before Franklin Roosevelt's administration undertook the New Deal.
** Twitter ([link removed])
** Facebook ([link removed])
** Website ([link removed])
Copyright © 2016. The Living New Deal, All rights reserved.

Our mailing address is:
The Living New Deal
1421 Lincoln St.
Berkeley, CA 94702

Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can ** update your preferences ([link removed])
or ** unsubscribe from this list ([link removed])