Today's New York City is safer and more economically robust than anyone could have imagined in the gritty 1970s, or even the early 1990s. But there is more to city life than economic success. As blocks and neighborhoods begin to respond to success, some have lost elements of the character that made them distinctive. National chain stores, bank branches, drugstores and cellphone outlets abound, seemingly beyond all measure, and housing costs have soared beyond the reach of the middle classes, never mind the bohemians.

Where does the life of the city come from? Is New York on the verge of losing its creative edge? What can be done to ensure the city’s ongoing vitality? Join a celebrated panel for a provocative discussion on whether the texture of the city—the tangible and intangible components that create its soul — is eroding or evolving.

• Clyde Haberman, The New York Times — moderator
• Rocco Landesman, Jujamcyn Theaters
• Alison Tocci, Time Out New York
• Darren Walker, Rockefeller Foundation