Over the next few weeks, PPS staff will travel to Australia, New Zealand, and cities all over the US to advance Placemaking, in addition to moving our transportation initiatives forward. Here are just a few of the many projects, speaking engagements, and workshops coming up- perhaps in a neighborhood near you!

This Week

Denver, Colorado

Ethan Kent contributes to the 2010 Community Matters Conference, October 5-8. Friday, he moderates a panel on Design for Change. He will also participate in a convening of leaders in Heart and Soul Planning. Follow Ethan's Twitter updates from the conference.

NYC (Markets)

This Friday, October 8, Kelly Verel will participate in a panel organized by the New York Immigration Coalition at the Queens Museum of Art. Kelly's talk will focus on the importance of cultural marketplaces and the myriad benefits of public markets.

Tupelo, Mississippi (Downtowns)

All this week, a team from PPS travels to Tupelo, Mississippi (Elvis' birthplace!) to work with a team of placemakers from the Trust’s National Main Street Center to help this community improve their Main Street.  This project engages a wide range of Tupelo stakeholders, community members and the Department of Transportation to enliven its Main Street corridor, a state highway which links downtown to the birthplace of Elvis and other public spaces and local destinations.

Corpus Christi, Texas: (Waterfronts)

October 6 and 7, Fred Kent and Kathy Madden travel back to Corpus Christi, where they are working with a highly organized group of dedicated citizens, known as Destination Bayfront, who are leading a campaign to build a world class waterfront in their city's downtown. This group has joined forces with the City of Corpus Christi and hundreds of interested citizens, to improve the waterfront using the Placemaking process.

Spokane, Washington

Fred Kent will give the keynote speech in Spokane, Washington about building a sustainable future for our cities around great destinations. Washington State University will host his talk as part of the Design Research Conference which explores the intersections between urban planning, architecture, interior design, landscape architecture, industrial design and health. Join Fred on October 8 at 6:30 p.m. in the Bing Crosby Theater, 901 W. Sprague, Spokane, Washington.

Late October and November

Upper Kirby, Texas  (Civic Centers)

Texas is the first stop for Cynthia Nikitin and Elena Madison as they travel to around the US to advance PPS' work expanding and enriching the function of civic and cultural centers.

First, October 12-14, they visit Upper Kirby, a small town near Houston, to lead a Placemaking workshop to plan new Civic Center (complete with classrooms and space for non-profits) that will compliment nearby Levy Park.  The community has already developed several plans for the space, and the goal of the session Elena and Cynthia will lead is to integrate the best of each plan into coherent steps forward.

Newberg, Oregon (Civic Centers)

From October 19-26, Cynthia and Elena travel back to Newberg, Oregon, gateway to some of the finest wine country of the Northeast (and -perhaps unpredictably- a hub for many fine ethnic restaurants) to lead a second workshop to link the town's cultural center and public plazas together, building a multi-use destination for tourists and locals alike.

Lincoln, Nebraska (Civic Centers)

Cynthia and Elena travel to Lincoln, Nebraska to help bring Placemaking to the city's ambitious redevelopment plan by facilitating a community process to develop a vision for a civic center in the city's downtown.

Austin, Texas

October 27-30, advancing our partnership with the National Trust, Gary Toth, Fred Kent, and Steve Davies will travel to Austin, TX,  for the Annual National Preservation Conference.

Sydney and Melbourne, Australia

October 25, Ethan travels to Sydney to kick off his visit with a public presentation at Better Cities, Great Waterfronts and presentation to the council of Canada Bay.

October 27-29, Ethan travels to Melbourne to Participate in the The Melbourne Placemaking Series, a conference that he helped conceive which will include contributions from innovative placemaking partners in the region. In Melbourne he will also be keynoting a conference on Libraries. He will then be working with the City of Newcastle to help institutionalize placemaking in their city government.

November 3, Ethan conducts a Placemaking Master Class with Village Well.

Taupo, New Zealand

November 5, Ethan visits Taupo, New Zealand to conduct a second session of the Placemaking Master Class.

To learn more about any of these events, please contact info@pps.org.   Arrange a meeting or attend a workshop and help Placemaking take root in your neighborhood!