Charlotte and Mecklenburg Public Library

Charlotte, North Carolina (2004-2005)

Client: The Public Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County

In 2004, the Public Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County distributed a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) for an identification of the issues, services, partnerships, and other opportunities that should shape the renovation of their Children’s Library space. Quoting from the RFQ: “We are interested in exploring traditional and non-traditional library uses and services. Our goal is to make the Main Library a vital, dynamic, and high traffic location with a variety of attractions for a diverse population.”

The language in the RFQ set the tone for a visioning process that put the library at the head of a trend to reinvent its function and relevance to communities. Working with library staff and local stakeholders, PPS organized two Placemaking workshops that generated a remarkable consensus that the library can be an important community space and make the most of its downtown location and connection to outdoor spaces. Citizens at the workshops described a vivid vision of how to transform the library with more comfort, amenities and non-traditional uses that would attract regular users, in addition to other short- and long-term recommendations.

Summarzing and building on these recommendations, PPS’ final report outlined a plan for implementation, beginning with a few immediate aesthetic improvements and programming ideas to signal the library’s commitment to its constituency and staff. The vision then detailed potential components of a Phase One design concept and strategy that included expansion of community meeting rooms and potential retail elements. Finally, the importance of a long-term concept that would address the library in its entirety and its potential to be a community resource/gathering space was discussed.



Trenton Spirit Walk

Trenton, NJ (2005)

Client: New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT); The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

A closeup of an area along the route

Thanks to a bold plan devised by NJDOT, the city of Trenton is once again about to reconnect to its riverfront across an at-grade, traffic calmed boulevard that will function as a link rather than as a barrier to the many residents, state employees and visitors to the state capital. In order to expand the positive impacts of the newly designed Route 29 more deeply into the communities that lay along the alignment, NJDOT and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation funded PPS to work with Isles, a local community development corporation, to develop a safe walking route that would connect the city’s 108 religious institutions to the riverfront, adjacent neighborhoods, and each other.

A map of the overall route

Building on the annual Spirit Walk health awareness event that takes place in Cadawalader Park, this re-imagined Spirit Walk initiative was designed to lead to permanent improvements to the pedestrian infrastructure of downtown Trenton as well as to promote healthy lifestyles, safe streets, and the city’s wealth of religious institutions and historic and cultural landmarks. Additional goals included using the Spirit Walk as the first piece of a citywide streetscape, wayfinding, and public space enhancement plan; tying faith-based and other community services— parks, libraries, schools, farmers market—together; connecting the walk to ongoing transportation planning projects underway in the City of Trenton; and making Trenton’s built environment more conducive to an active lifestyle.

With these goals in mind, PPS and Isles. Inc. conducted several community meetings and a broader Placemaking workshop to gather ideas and identify key concerns from stakeholders. PPS’ comprehensive report, modeled after this community input, featured recommendations focused on specific districts along the walk, as well as design features including signage and branding. The report also included case studies from successful walking routes throughout the country.



Virginia Avenue Park and Pico Farmers Market

Santa Monica, CA (1990-2005)

Client: City of Santa Monica


Virginia Park has long been a treasured community asset of the Pico neighborhood, a lower income community with a very diverse population in Santa Monica, California.   One of the great assets of the park has been the Pico Farmers Market, which operated on a vacant grocery store lot next to the park.  PPS, in conjunction with a local architectural and landscape architectural team, undertook an analysis of the existing market and conducted community workshops to vision an expanded, 9 acre public space that would integrate the market site as well as other parcels that became available during the planning process.

The park is unusual because it is not just green space.  In addition to the market, the park contains small buildings – including a re-used paint shop – which house a wide variety of community uses.  In addition to playgrounds, a ball field, and an interactive water-play area, the “new” Virginia Park contains a senior center, a teen center, and a main park building with:


The market has been relocated to be the central feature of the park on Saturdays, located on a new esplanade that converts to other uses when the market is not operating.   On market days, the park is especially full of people and the market – now located in the heart of the park — reinforces the role of the entire public space plays as a community hub.

Virginia Avenue Park is green in another way: it is the first park in the U.S. to be awarded the LEED® Silver Rating for environmental sustainability by the U.S. Green Building Council.

Categories: Markets, Projects



Washington Square Park

A User Analysis and Place Performance Evaluation

New York City, NY (2005)

Client: The Washington Square Park Council

Washington Square Park is one of the best known and best-loved destinations in New York City. And as a neighborhood park and civic gathering place, it may be one of the great public spaces in the world.

The fountain is a major focal point of activity and a popular gathering place.

In 2005, the Washington Square Park Council asked PPS to conduct an analysis of how Washington Square Park was being used, focusing on how people were using different areas of the park, and how well the current park design and amenities support people’s activities. The analyses included both an online and intercept survey of people in the park, systematic observations, and pedestrian counts at entrances.

The Council enlisted PPS in the study in response to plans developed by the New York City Parks Department to redesign areas of Washington Square Park. The Council used PPS’ findings to illustrate how loved and well-used the park is by the community, and also to demonstrate that when engaged, the community members themselves had many ideas on what could be done to improve Washington Square Park without changing the park’s unique character.

Aerial view of Washington Square Park

In August of 2005, PPS’ observers mapped park use on one weekend and two weekdays, documenting the number of people using the park, which parts of the park were used by different types of people, what activities they engaged in, the level of use of entrances, and use of the park by time of day. PPS also conducted informal observations, recorded the condition of amenities in the park, surveyed a sample of 150 people in the park and posted the survey on-line. The results of the study were presented to the Council and later, to the neighborhood as part of a workshop.

The analysis was designed to better understand the primary uses of the park and the needs of park users. The effort did not poll people on their perceptions or opinions about the proposed redesign of the park. Rather, the surveys were designed to give people an opportunity to talk about what was important to them about the park, and to identify uses and activities that could potentially be incorporated into the future design. The Council also hoped to increase community involvement in the park and elicit ideas for programming.

PPS documented patterns of use within the park - the darker shades represent the busiest areas of activity.

The study generated a number of recommendations for small upgrades that would quickly improve the park’s appearance, as well as the need for an improved management presence in the park. The recommendations were presented to the Council, the Parks Department, and the Arts Commission, which voted to approve the Parks Department plan with several adjustments to the central fountain area based on PPS’ analysis.

Categories: Parks, Projects



Creating Viable Public Spaces at Pearl Brewery

San Antonio, Texas (2005)

Client: Silver Ventures


The historic Pearl Brewery, located along the San Antonio River in San Antonio, stood empty for many years after its closing in 2001. Silver Ventures, a local developer, purchased the site in 2002, and has developed an ambitious and innovative vision for the redevelopment of the brewery. The vision is to transform the Pearl Brewery site, and the surrounding neighborhood, into a mixed-use development that combines education and learning with an array of other uses, including residential, dining, culture, arts, shopping, and recreation venues. Today, Pearl Brewery is currently undergoing a transformation into an iconic cultural gathering place.

Silver Ventures hired Project for Public Spaces to lead a study investigating the economic viability of creating dynamic, civic oriented public spaces within a successful private development. Pearl Brewery’s public spaces will play a particularly important role in transforming the site into a major destination and a vibrant district that nurtures community and diversity, as they will host the many uses and activities planned for the new development.

PPS participated in a two-day design charette with the development team to generate ideas for proposed uses and activities, as well as the character of the public spaces in the new mixed-use development. The main ideas that resulted from this exercise focused on creating a village atmosphere with a human scale, preservation of historic structures, and creating a place that fosters arts, multi-cultural experiences, and learning. PPS used the results of the charette to create a program of activities, amenities to support those uses, and character for eight specific sites within the development.

PPS’ experience has shown that 80% of the success of any public space is dependent upon its management. With MJM Management Group, a San Francisco-based company that specializes in public space and facility management, PPS developed a management program for Pearl Brewery, which included recommendations for maintenance, security and hospitality, programming, marketing and promotion, commercial tenant management, and parking.

PPS also recommended creating a management entity that can meet the challenge of managing the rich variety of public spaces that Pearl will feature. Based on analysis of different types of management entities and case studies of successful public spaces, PPS and MJM determined that the most appropriate public space management entity is a not-for-profit organization, to allow for more flexibility and access to larger variety of funding sources.

As San Antonio Express News reported in 2006, the details the recent changes at Pearl Brewery and the steps towards implementing the vision to create a modern village with a strong sense of community.

Categories: Multi-Use, Projects



The Meatpacking District: A Community Vision for Gansevoort Plaza

New York, NY (2005)

Client: Meatpacking District Initiative (MPDI), funded by The Open Planning Project

Gansevoort Plaza is a wide open cobblestone intersection in the heart of the Meatpacking District.

Manhattan’s newest historic district, the Meatpacking District, is known for unique wide streets lined with distinctive Belgium pavers, and low rise buildings. Still a working district, recent changes in land use have brought in major fashion houses and boutiques, cutting-edge restaurants, nightlife, and hotels.

The district’s problems today are principally a result of its success, and the tremendous growth and development it has seen since the mid 1990′s. Traffic, congestion, declining pedestrian safety, noise, and worsening neighborly relations are all burgeoning problems recognized by residents and local leaders as threats to the area.

Process

PPS worked with business owners, residents, and community leaders to define the problems, identify best practices, and formulate a vision for what they want their neighborhood to be. PPS held a community workshop and conducted observations — which included traffic counts, pedestrian counts, activity mapping, time lapse video, parking analysis and surveys — and used the findings to create a community-based vision for the district’s future.

There were no pedestrian amenities in the area, and no places to sit.

Findings

PPS found that an over-supply of taxis, wide streets and confusing traffic patterns resulted in unnecessary late-night congestion, as well as dangerous pedestrian-vehicular conflicts. Recommendations for improving these conditions include narrowing some streets, creating dedicated loading zones, and creating drop-off and pick-up areas.

The community vision for Gansevoort Plaza was depicted in a photosimulation.

Recommendations for improving these conditions include narrowing 9th avenue, adding public and cafe seating areas, creating dedicated loading zones, and creating drop-off and pick-up areas. PPS developed a photosimulation of the vision for a plaza that has seating, planters and the flexibility to host temporary events.

As a result of this study and visioning process, community leaders created the Greater Gansevoort Urban Improvement Project (GGUIP). GGUIP has hired the Regional Plan Association and Sam Schwartz Company to model traffic impacts and the feasibility of the community’s vision. GGUIP expanded the study zone, to ensure that they can make the most positive impact on traffic in as large an area as possible.

The project was implemented in spring 2008 with a radical reclamation of public space protected by planters, concrete balls, and sitable artforms. The number of people sitting, socializing and spending time in the district has increased significantly. There have been some issues with traffic flow and drop off space that may need to be addressed. The design will continue to be adapted to best respond to community needs.

PPS’ project partners included MPDI, Transportation Alternatives, Community Board 2 Transportation Committee, and several elected officials. This project was part of the NYC Streets Renaissance Campaign, a movement to re-imagine the streets of New York City as lively public places.

Gansevoort Plaza completed.

More on Gansevoort Plaza

A New Vision for the Meatpacking District, Streetsblog, October 23, 2006

Download PPS’s findings and recommendations

Read more about the NYC Streets Renaissance

Categories: Parks, Projects, Squares



Harvard University North Campus Placemaking Study

Cambridge, Massachusetts (2005)

Client: Harvard Planning + Allston Initiative, Harvard University


The North Campus of Harvard University lacks the cohesiveness and sense of place associated with Harvard Yard — it lacks identity and is not known as a memorable or distinct Harvard place. Although large numbers of students, faculty, and staff pass through the area daily, between the Law School, Divinity School, Science Center, and Peabody Museums, there are few activities to bring people together, especially outdoors where they would attract people and give the area a friendlier ambience. In many cases, the character of University buildings has been defined more by their academic function than by how they appear or are experienced from the outside.

Harvard Planning + Allston Initiative (HP + AI) hired Project for Public Spaces in April 2005 to conduct a study of urban design options for creating successful public spaces in the North Campus. Working closely with Harvard, PPS’ task was to apply its Placemaking methodology by engaging a group of Harvard stakeholders in the evaluation and visioning process for this key campus opportunity.

PPS conducted a workshop with about 20 faculty and staff and 20 students to gain the user’s perspective and identify issues and opportunities. Participants agreed that the North Campus lacks the amenities, activities, identity and character to make it a successful public space. Based on the workshop findings, PPS developed a series of programmatic and physical planning recommendations for the campus that would enhance existing destinations and improve the overall image. In addition to long term proposals, PPS identified several short term experiments that could allow the University to test ideas, make immediate improvements, and learn more about how Placemaking could be incorporated into future planning efforts.

PPS also worked with Harvard during the Winter of 2006 on the Allston Campus.

Categories: Campuses, Projects



“Stations as Places” Training

New Jersey (2005)

Client: NJ TRANSIT

More than 50 NJ TRANSIT staff evaluated how well the New Brunswick train station performed as a place, in order to learn how to better manage all NJ TRANSIT stations across the state.

NJ TRANSIT is the nation’s third largest provider of bus, rail and light rail transit. Its system includes 161 rail stations, 28 light-rail stations and more than 17,000 bus stops. Every one of these transit facilities, from simple bus stops to major train stations, is a natural focal point for the community, a gravity point for activity that can help to revitalize adjacent neighborhoods, improve the image of the transit agency and increase ridership. PPS and NJ TRANSIT have worked together over many years to ensure that New Jersey’s bus stops and train stations live up to their potential as great public spaces.

In 2005, NJ TRANSIT hired PPS to train NJ TRANSIT staff to better identify deficiencies in the agency’s train stations, take the appropriate remedial actions, and turn the stations into great assets both for the transit agency and the communities they serve.

Fifty-five NJ TRANSIT staff from many departments, including Government and Community Relations, Real Estate, Capital Planning, Customer Service and Rail Operations, participated in one of PPS’ three day-long trainings. After an initial PowerPoint presentation which identified the basic principles of successful public spaces and successful transit stations in particular, participants visited the New Brunswick train station and used Placemaking principles to evaluate how well the station functioned. Through this case-study exercise and the discussion that followed, training participants realized that NJ TRANSIT provided no systematic way to fund minor station improvements outside of the station-wide, or system-wide major rehabilitation schedule.

After the training, the Customer Resources Department of NJ TRANSIT created a new Station Management Team, with representatives from several of the agency’s departments, to prioritize the funding of minor station improvement projects across the system.

Categories: Projects, Training, Transportation



Focus on Place: A New Planning Framework

Montgomery County's new "Focus On Place" strategy aims to transform automobile arterials like Georgia Avenue into pedestrian- and bicycle-friendly grand boulevards.

Montgomery County, MD (2005)

Client: Montgomery County Park & Planning Department

Thirty years ago, Montgomery County, just outside of Washington DC, adopted one of the most progressive planning policies of its time. “On Wedges and Corridors” declared that new development would take place along the county’s major transportation corridors, while wedges of open space between the corridors would be preserved. The county set aside one-third of its land area — nearly 100,000 acres — off-limits to development, preserving it for open space and farmland.

Today, as the rest of the county fills up and pressure for development in the Agricultural Reserve grows, the County is embarking an another progressive planning effort: to capture the County’s future development potential through a more focused pattern of sustainable growth. Vibrant, mixed-use centers, along with attractive, shared-use boulevards and great public spaces, will ensure economic growth for the county, while enhancing the quality of life of its residents.

After attending a PPS How to Turn a Place Around workshop in New York, the Montgomery County Park & Planning Department hired Project for Public Spaces to help develop and adopt a new planning policy framework based on small-scale, community-oriented neighborhood planning. PPS was also charged with promoting this new framework to the Montgomery County Council, other county government officials, and the public.

Montgomery County is protecting its Agricultural Reserve by focusing growth in the county's centers. Underused commercial strips like this one will be redeveloped into vibrant mixed-use centers.

Today, Montgomery County Park & Planning is working closely with community stakeholders, citizen associations and other government agencies in identifying pilot projects — an aging commercial center, an arterial road and a community-gathering place — where it can implement this new planning approach beginning in 2006.

Categories: Projects, Transportation



Moscow Market

Moscow, Russia (2005)

Client: Crownway Investment Limited

Crownway Investment Limited, a private, commercial developer, hired PPS to conceptualize and schematically design a central market in downtown Moscow between the circus and the subway station as part of a new mixed-use development. Crownway saw the market as a vital asset to the retail, restaurants, and possible residential units it was about to build.

The mixed-use development would complement this specific area of Moscow, which is densely populated and full of residential units, public transportation, cultural events, and a park. The market would connect to the underground subway station and be a signature piece of the development.

The developer’s goal was to maximize real estate value, and although they did not host community workshops, they approached the project with the principles of connecting the market to place and community.

The outcome of the project is currently unknown, as the developer has had to shrink the initial site. Instead of locating the market at the subway level, it may be moved to upper floors. Despite the uncertain outcome, planning a large central market in an international city was a great work experience for PPS.

Categories: International, Markets, Projects



Ninotsminda Central Market

Ninotsminda, Republic of Georgia (2005)

Client: Urban Institute (UI), Town of Ninotsminda

Community members participate in a public workshop.

With financial support from the United States Agency in International Development (US AID), the Urban Institute hired Project for Public Spaces (PPS) to help community members in Ninotsminda, Georgia, re-design the town’s central market (bazaar), where people could buy meat, dairy, fish, produce, and local crafts from Georgian and Armenian producers, as a more visible and accessible community marketplace. PPS traveled to Ninotsminda, population 8,000, at the start of the project in the Fall of 2005, and worked with local business planners and the local district government to organize a Steering Committee.

Located in the center of the town, the market is a central aspect of downtown Ninotsminda; it is close to a busy intersection, adjacent to City Hall, and in front of a school. But despite the proximity to downtown retail activity and social life, the market building is not very visible – it is set back from the street in a small space. The goal of the project is to move it to a new, larger location that has more entrances and is more accessible.

The site of the future market.

To re-design the market in a way that aligns with the community’s desires, PPS and the other team members hosted Placemaking workshops that were open to residents, farmers, and local officials, including the mayor. The workshops encouraged people to see themselves as part of the re-design process, and led to the creation of a Market Corporation that will manage the market and represent new ideas.

PPS and the partner organizations conducted observations in the town, noting how people accessed the market, and where the nodes of activity were located in order to better connect the market with social activity. Redeveloping the central market is expected to lead to further economic opportunities; the market will catalyze additional developments and investments in the town by local businesses and other international aid groups related to building and improving roads and infrastructure.

The local Steering Committee and Market Corporation have taken ownership of the management of the current development process, and are incorporating PPS’ suggestions for merchandising, storage facilities, circulation and waterways. They plan to re-open the market in the Spring of 2006. Much of the project’s development depends on international aid, which will be used to re-habilitate the old structure if it comes through. PPS returned to Ninotsminda to help evaluate the process and future plans in the Spring, ’06. The site of the new market is currently empty, but the market is planned to be up and running by September ’06.

Categories: International, Markets, Projects



Hyde Park Market

Hyde Park, NY (2005)

Client: Bargmann Hendrie + Archetype, Inc.

The Town of Hyde Park, NY, located in the beautiful Hudson River Valley, is exploring the idea of opening a public market and regional visitor’s center on the site of a drive-in that is currently still in use. Project for Public Spaces was hired in 2005 to refine the market/visitor center concept and to provide business, site and strategic plans for the project. Hyde Park is an area that has several important historic sites, including the home of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, protected scenic lands, and federally-designated natural heritage areas. PPS envisions a market that will benefit and draw from this tourism economy, as well as strengthen the local economy.

PPS held a visioning workshop and several well-attended community planning meetings, and discovered a need and desire for the regional market to be successful. Positioned cohesively on the site and merchandised competitively as a hub for the local economy and place for both locals and visitors (both of whom are more and more interested in buying “local”) to shop at, the market itself can become a prime attraction for the town and region. Such an attraction would provide a foothold for the local economy and raise the consciousness of the region’s inherent value and resources – ones that need to be fostered and preserved.

As a part of the strategic plan, PPS refined the idea of creating a regional center with integrated uses, rather than just a stand-alone indoor market. PPS’ plan also includes an information center, which would provide information on the 80 sites within the Hudson Valley National Heritage, including parks, trails, historic sites, etc. The center could also serve as a transportation hub in several ways: the site connects with the area’s growing number of walking and bicycling trails, and also hiking trails; shuttle buses could bring visitors to sites around Hyde Park; and a bicycle rental facility could be located at the market. And as the drive-in theater is a significant social and cultural asset to the area, it will remain in operation, potentially partnering with the market in a way that is most beneficial to all parties.

PPS also prepared a detailed site concept plan and market concept, which includes recommendations on the market layout, market operations, management, merchandise mix, funding and fundraising, potential partners and sponsors, and marketing and promotions.

Categories: Markets, Projects