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Next stop: Pittsburgh! / Photo: mismisimos via Flickr

What Placemakers Can Learn from Bike/Ped Advocates

By Project for Public Spaces on Feb 21, 2013 | 1 Comment

Mark Plotz is the director of the National Center for Bicycling and Walking, a resident program of the Project for Public Spaces. What that means, in practice, is that Mark is the man who makes Pro Walk/Pro Bike: Pro Place happen! Mark’s been poring over the results of last September’s conference in Long [...]

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New Report on Farmers Markets & Low-Income Communities

By Project for Public Spaces on Feb 20, 2013 | 10 Comments

In 2009, the Project for Public Spaces (PPS), with support from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and in partnership with Columbia University, undertook a study to examine what market characteristics successfully attract low-income shoppers. The study also explored the obstacles that may prevent low income individuals from shopping at a farmers market when [...]

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Walking is Not a Crime: Questioning the Accident Axiom

By David M Nelson on Feb 14, 2013 | 16 Comments

The Pedestrian Pandemic
In 2010, the last year the National Highway Safety Traffic Administration (NHSTA) published such figures, a startling 4,280 pedestrians were hit and killed in traffic and 70,000 were injured. For many states, this past year was one of the most deadly in a decade, ending a general decline in pedestrian [...]

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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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25 Mini-Adventures in the Library

By Project for Public Spaces on Feb 8, 2013 | 2 Comments

It takes a village, the saying goes, to raise a child. Embedded within this age-old nugget of wisdom is the assertion that parenting is, at least in part, a public affair. From streets to parks, children learn so much from interacting with public spaces, both in terms of learning about their physical environment and interacting [...]

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The Porch in Philadelphia before and after rightsizing / Photo: University City District

Rightsizing Streets to Create Great Public Spaces

By Seth Ullman on Feb 7, 2013 | 1 Comment

I’m a pedestrian before I’m a driver, a rider, a passenger, a worker, or a shopper. I have to walk through public space to get anywhere, and I prefer walking where there are other people, comfortable sidewalks, and crossable streets. Plants, diverse businesses, and the possibility of running into friends are bonuses. Streets built just [...]

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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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In Detroit, an / Photo: Brendan Crain

Challenges and Warts: How Physical Places Define Local Economies

By Brendan Crain on Jan 30, 2013 | 12 Comments


“People develop, not places.”

So writes Jim Russell in a recent post over at Burgh Diaspora, in arguing that cities are wasting their money on Placemaking when they should be focusing more directly on talent development. In his view, widely held these days, Placemaking is about plunking down “cool urban amenities” and [...]

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Connie Spellman

How to Really Look at Your City: An Interview With Connie Spellman

By Project for Public Spaces on Jan 24, 2013 | Add Comment

PPS Transportation Associate David M. Nelson is our resident expert on all things Omaha. When he heard that we were interviewing Omaha By Design director Connie  Spellman for the Placemaking Blog, he was not at a loss for words! David had this to say:

Growing up in Omaha wasn’t necessarily glamorous. In 1980s, Omaha [...]

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Welcome to the Rightsizing Streets Guide

By Gary Toth on Jan 22, 2013 | 8 Comments

Many of our streets haven’t changed in decades, even when they’ve proven dangerous, or the surrounding communities’ needs have changed. When the roads have been altered, they have often been made wider, straighter, and faster, rather than more livable.

Our Rightsizing Streets Guide aims to help planners and community members update their streets to [...]

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"Ready, set, go!" / Photo: Dan Burden

Bracing for the Silver Tsunami

By Mark Plotz on Jan 17, 2013 | 1 Comment

In mid-December I was invited to participate in a listening session convened by the AARP and GOVERNING to consider the question of how local government can prepare for the so-called “Silver Tsunami” of Baby Boomers entering retirement. It was an impressive group that convened: leaders from Federal agencies; leaders from the many national non-profit organizations [...]

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When is a Market More Than Just a Market?

By Kathy Madden on Jan 16, 2013 | 3 Comments

Holiday markets in Germany are more than simply “markets” in an economic sense. More importantly they play a much broader role in the social life of people who live in the communities where they are held. Not only do they provide unique and beautiful settings in the cold winters with dark afternoons, but [...]

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