From the Triangle District to the New Triangle District

By: Traci Phillips

Brick by Brick, the Block Is Coming Back starting with The Wiz gala.

During the early 1900s through the mid-1950s, Charleston’s Triangle District stood as one of the city’s most concentrated Black residential and business corridors. Located on the East End, the Triangle was home to Black-owned stores, barbershops, restaurants, churches, social halls, and family homes. It was a place where Black Charleston lived, worked, worshiped, and built generational roots.

The block was not symbolic. It was literal.

The Triangle thrived during segregation — not because opportunity was abundant, but because Black residents were restricted in where they could live, bank, shop, and gather. Within those imposed boundaries, families built something powerful: a self-sustaining economic and cultural hub.

Its decline was not the result of failure.

It was the result of policy.

Beginning in the late 1950’s and accelerating through the 1960’s and 1970’s, federal urban renewal programs labeled parts of Charleston’s East End “blighted.” Large sections of the Triangle District were cleared for redevelopment and infrastructure expansion. Homes and storefronts were demolished. Families were displaced. Generational property ownership was disrupted. The physical footprint of the neighborhood was permanently altered.

The neighborhood did not collapse. It was dismantled.

For families who lived there, the loss was personal. Among them is the Phillips family. Justin Phillips, now a co-founder and board member of the New Triangle District nonprofit, is the only board member whose family was directly displaced from the original Triangle. His father, Levi Phillips, has spoken about the loss of home, stability, and community ties that came with displacement.

“My father’s experience being displaced from the Triangle District inspired the name,” Justin Phillips said. “Calling it the New Triangle District makes it clear we’re not starting over — we’re continuing something that already existed. We’re building forward without disconnecting from where we came from.”

Today, the New Triangle District — a nonprofit formed in Charleston and led by Black entrepreneurs including Shamika Robinson, Yvonne Lee, Octavia Cordon, Traci Phillips, and Justin Phillips — is working to ensure the Triangle is remembered not only for what was lost, but for what can still be rebuilt.

Their mission moves from memory to action with The Wiz Gala fundraiser on March 28. Proceeds from the event will support two major East End investments: the construction of a skating rink and the renovation of a future Multigenerational Center. Plans for the center include a food court, office space, retail storefronts, and flexible community areas designed to support entrepreneurship, connection, and long-term neighborhood vitality.

As Black History Month invites reflection, the New Triangle District is focused on momentum. The story of the Triangle is not confined to archives. It is living history — carried by descendants and reshaped through intentional reinvestment.

Brick by brick, the block is coming back.

And it begins with community choosing to remember, invest, and show up.

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🎟️ Tickets Are On Sale Now

🎭 The Wiz Gala Fundraiser
📅 Saturday, March 28, 2026
📍 India Center | South Charleston

🎟️ Tickets are NOW ON SALE
🔗 https://square.link/u/3ne745lz

📲 Follow the New Triangle District on Facebook
🌐 Visit their website to learn more about the mission and upcoming events and to donate to the organization.