WHO WE ARE

Philip C. Myrick

Vice President

Philip Myrick is a Vice President and director of PPS’ work in parks and plazas, campuses and downtowns. He is a certified planner whose expertise encompasses public space planning, Context Sensitive Solutions (CSS), downtown revitalization, and facilitation. Phil joined PPS in 1995 and has led many of PPS’ major projects and programs. He currently manages the New Hampshire CSS Training Program for PPS, which is led by Tom Warne Associates and co-taught with Sally Oldham, of Oldham Historic Properties. He has helped New Hampshire DOT implement a new project development process by acting as a facilitator between DOT and its client communities on new projects as the DOT transitions to CSS. Other current and recent technical assistance projects include:

Harvard University’s master plan for the new Allston Campus, with Cooper Robertson & Partners (client: Harvard University);
Harvard University North Campus Placemaking (client: Harvard University);
A vision for Houston's new Discovery Green park, which opened in April 2008 (client: Houston Downtown Park Conservancy);
An urban open space plan for downtown Tempe, AZ (client: City of Tempe);
An assessment of CSS training programs nationwide (client: FHWA);
A strategy for enhancing Times Square as an improved, pedestrian-friendly destination (client: Times Square Alliance);
A master plan for Congress Street, historically Tucson’s main downtown shopping street (client: City of Tucson);
A Placemaking master plan for the Littleton, NH Main Street and other commercial corridors (client: Town of Littleton);
Redevelopment guidelines for the Blount Street Historic District, a neighborhood in downtown Raleigh, NC, now under construction (client: State of North Carolina); and
A community planning process for pedestrian improvements along Vine Street in Philadelphia, with the Center City District, including public space revitalization from Logan Circle to Franklin Square. (client: William Penn Foundation)

Phil has also managed and participated in many of PPS’ international projects and training programs: in the Czech Republic, Croatia, Serbia, Scotland, Georgia, and Armenia.

Phil led the development of a new website on Context Sensitive Solutions/Design under a contract with the Federal Highway Administration: www.ContextSensitiveSolutions.org. He has led other major research projects as well, including the involvement of nonprofits in managing public spaces. The research was published in the book Public Parks, Private Partners (Project for Public Spaces, 2000). Since its inception in 1995, Phil has also managed the Urban Parks Institute, along with its well-known Great Parks / Great Cities conferences and its web site Urban Parks ONLINE.

Phil has delivered keynotes, professional training and workshops across the U.S and Europe. Audiences include the American Library Association, the Neighborhood Reinvestment Training Institute, the YongSan Park Symposium in Korea, the Annual International Forum on Urban Parks in Bogotá Colombia, and the National Association of Olmsted Parks, in addition to hundreds of neighborhood and community-based associations in the U.S. and abroad.

Prior to joining PPS, Phil worked as a sculptor for a number of years in Zimbabwe and Portugal, which, along with his own observations, raised his awareness of public space and urban issues internationally. His understanding of international issues extends back to a childhood in South Africa with activist parents, and also includes a leave of absence in the winter and spring of 2001 to teach a traveling college course on planning and community development in India (Mumbai), South Africa (Johannesburg and Cape Town), and Brazil (Rio de Janeiro and Curitiba).

Education

Hunter College, Master of Urban Planning, 1995.
Grinnell College, Bachelor of Arts, 1984.

Training and Instruction

New Hampshire DOT CSS Training program (2005 – present)
New York State DOT CSS Training program
Faculty Member, Urban Planning, International Honors Program, a traveling college course on planning issues in developing countries: Mumbai, India; Johannesburg and Cape Town, South Africa; and Rio de Janeiro and Curitiba, Brazil (Winter/Spring semester 2001)
Faculty Member, Neighborhood Reinvestment Training Institute
Guest Instructor, Vassar College, Department of Urban Affairs (1999)
Adjunct Professor, New York University, Robert Wagner School of Public Service, CAPSTONE graduate seminar (1997)

Major Publications

Public Parks, Private Partners. New York, Project for Public Spaces, 2000 (135 pgs. Illustrated, ISBN 0-9706324-3-6).

Professional Affiliations

American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP)
American Planning Association

Awards

American Planning Association (APA), Robert C. Weinberg student award for outstanding achievement
Municipal Art Society of New York (MAS), Honorary Fellow
James Felt Scholarship, Hunter College
Steiner Prize, Grinnell College