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Book Review: Made for Walking: Density and Neighborhood Form

By Brendan Crain on Apr 9, 2013 | 1 Comment

Arguments about density are often front and center when walkability is being discussed. We know that density is an important factor in encouraging more walking (and discouraging driving), but walkability is a particularly complex, and seemingly ephemeral quality. Whether or not a person chooses to walk depends on so many factors beyond just [...]

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Capitol Park will become a hub for arts and creativity / Image: PPS

Detroit Leads the Way on Place-Centered Revitalization

By Project for Public Spaces on Mar 29, 2013 | 13 Comments

You may have heard about downtown Detroit’s big comeback story. Campus Martius has become one of America’s great urban squares. Demand for housing has outstripped supply for months. Major tech firms like Twitter are opening up offices in refurbished historic buildings. The Motor City’s historic core is ascendant.

Yesterday, at an event hosted by [...]

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Announcing The Future of Places Conference Series

By Project for Public Spaces on Feb 10, 2013 | Add Comment

On June 24-26th, 2013, Placemaking leaders from around the world will gather together with UN officials, representatives from international government agencies, NGOs, designers, change agents, mayors, local politicians, and other place-centered actors for The Future of Places, the first of three linked conferences that will develop a ‘Future of Places Declaration’ to influence the [...]

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Opportunity is Local (Or: You Can’t Buy a New Economy)

By Brendan Crain on Feb 5, 2013 | 9 Comments

“At the heart of my argument,” writes Jim Russell in his response to last Wednesday’s blog post, “is the fact that [Placemaking] initiatives are intrinsically place-centric. Instead of place-centrism, I’m looking at talent migration through a lens of people-centrism…I’m convinced that placemaking is useful, but not for talent attraction/retention. People move for purposes [...]

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The first meeting of the Placemaking Leadership Council will take place in downtown Detroit, Michigan, home of the wonderful Campus Martius Park / Photo: PPS

Announcing the Placemaking Leadership Council

By Project for Public Spaces on Jan 13, 2013 | 26 Comments

For those of us who are passionate about the public spaces in our communities, this is an extraordinary time. The general awareness of the importance of a strong sense of place—to the economy, to our social fabric, to human health—is growing stronger every day. Placemaking is, at this moment, being transformed from a useful tool [...]

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A lonely swing looks out over a missed opportunity. / Photo: jennyrotten via Flickr

Whom Does Design Really Serve?

By Fred Kent on Oct 3, 2012 | 53 Comments

Professionals are against participation because it destroys the arcane privileges of specialization, unveils the professional secret, strips bare incompetence, multiplies responsibilities and converts them from the private into the social. – Giancarlo De Carlo

On a recent trip to Toronto, I visited Sherbourne Common, a waterfront park designed by Phillips Farevaag Smallenberg. Walking [...]

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The Perth Cultural Centre is seen here in full bloom during CHOGM 2011 / Photo: Metropolitan Redevelopment Authority

Creativity & Placemaking: Building Inspiring Centers of Culture

By Project for Public Spaces on Aug 16, 2012 | 13 Comments

As much as we prize creativity in cities today, the cultural centers that we’ve built to celebrate it rarely hit the mark. Culture is born out of human interaction; it therefore cannot exist without people around to enjoy, evaluate, remix, and participate in it. So why do our cultural centers so often turn inward, away [...]

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A Revolution in Placemaking

By Project for Public Spaces on Jul 3, 2012 | 2 Comments

Since the Project for Public Spaces was founded in 1975,we have worked in thousands of communities around the world to help people shape their public spaces to create great Places, where locals feel a sense of ownership, and visitors don’t want to leave. Still, for as much fun as we’ve had, something feels different lately. [...]

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Continuing the Conversation: Towards an Architecture of Place

By Project for Public Spaces on May 2, 2012 | 4 Comments
Our posts on moving towards an Architecture of Place have stirred up a lively debate that provide new insight on how to move architecture in the right direction.
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The Mystery Plaza at Astor Place

By Brendan Crain on Apr 12, 2012 | Add Comment
The presence of an ephemeral "mystery plaza" at Astor Place offers a unique opportunity to visualize a grand new public space in Manhattan.
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People Are Talking About Placemaking…

By Fred Kent on Nov 2, 2011 | 2 Comments
Placemaking is in the news these days, and it's got us thinking that we are at an exciting moment in history.
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Visitors say "The People's Place feels like a place to live"

“The People’s Place:” How Placemaking Can Build Today’s Best Libraries

By Megan MacIver on Jun 30, 2011 | 4 Comments
For all those who feared the rise of the Internet would mean the fall of the library here is a story of hope.
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