History of The Lower East Side Jewish Conservancy

The Lower East Side Jewish Conservancy is an educational and cultural organization established in late 1998. The Conservancy operates under the aegis of the United Jewish Council of the East Side, Inc. (UJC), a long-established and well-respected community social-service organization representing nearly 50 Lower East Side synagogues, schools, and cultural institutions.

The Conservancy was created with two initial goals: to support, enhance and activate the Lower East Side’s community of living synagogues and other historic structures, and to raise public awareness of the Lower East Side’s distinct cultural identity, both as a historic and present-day Jewish community. The Conservancy’s initial target area spanned from Houston to Henry Streets, and Forsyth St. to the East River. These boundaries have been expanded north to East 14th Street – the northern end of the “historic” Lower East Side.