The City of Durham has received a $199,000 grant from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development to hire a full time project planner for two years and to create economic incentives to encourage businesses to move to Parrish Street.

Once known as the Black Wall Street, Parrish Street recently has been home to only a few small businesses, although renovation has begun on some of the office and retail buildings which line the street. HPSD has recognized these pioneering efforts with its Pyne Preservation Award and its Neighborhood Conservation Award.

The revitalization of Parrish Street has been a city priority since at least 2000.

Heritage Directions, an Asheville consulting firm, recommended in March that the city work to recapture the area's rich entrepreneurial history and market the area as a heritage tourism destination. The firm's recommendations included a city effort to attract new shops, restaurants and other businesses to Parrish Street and an outdoor museum with installations on the street.

HPSD's Fall 2004 Meeting featured a presentation about the Parrish Street redevelopment and the Museum Without Walls by Alan DeLisle of Durham's Office of Economic and Employment Development.