Project for Public Spaces

Purple Places Majesty


A way forward for America beyond red and blue.

W

hen we raise the idea of place these days, many people's first question is: Is it a red-state place or a blue-state place? The election results show us a country that is close to evenly divided between Democrats and Republicans. Common ground hardly seems to exist anymore.

We at PPS believe that public places, and the pride and value they bring to widely diverse communities, offer a key lesson about the way our country needs to move forward.

The issues and rhetoric of the presidential campaign left many people feeling afraid, angry, divided, or isolated. If America stays that way, we'll all be losers coming out of this election. It's easy to forget that progressives, conservatives, and everyone in between share common ground every day--literally. They cross paths in parks, commercial streets, coffee shops, markets, libraries, houses of worship, trains and buses, community centers. Public places are the heart of our democracy -- not only where we vote in November, but where we meet neighbors and exchange ideas the rest of the year.

We at PPS believe that public places, and the pride and value they bring to widely diverse communities, offer a key lesson about the way our country needs to move forward. Cooperation, tolerance, and careful attention to people's well-being--precisely the things that define a successful public place--are what's missing from our political debate and public policies today.

We're reminded of the importance of these values everywhere we work--in "red" communities like Anchorage and Omaha, or "blue" strongholds like San Mateo County in California and New Jersey. These don't have to be liberal or conservative causes, but simple common sense that benefits everyone.

We've seen over and over again how a community-oriented process to create or improve public places--we call it "Placemaking"--can bring people together in new ways. We've found this to be true in areas more deeply divided than the United States, through our work in Serbia, Croatia, and Montenegro.

We deeply believe that Placemaking can shape a new social and political agenda that transcends the divides in our country.

Placemaking is a practical method to discover common ground in a community by encouraging a diversity of opinion toward the goal of building a better place for everyone. This same spirit can guide our national political conversation. What makes places great, makes nations great -- and makes the world more peaceful and prosperous.

In the aftermath of election day the PPS staff met as a group and resolved to increase our Placemaking and community-building efforts across America. We also committed ourselves to expanding our work internationally. We embraced the mission of launching a new movement focusing on the ideas of Placemaking.

We deeply believe that Placemaking can shape a new social and political agenda that transcends the divides in our country and transforms American society. Looking at public issues, ranging from the environment to economic policy, through the new lens of place can build a bridge to the future that everyone wants.

To help raise Placemaking as a new subject in our national conversation, we are launching the Great Cities Initiative, which gathers all of PPS's services into a united program of community-building. We are also planning a series of workshops, initiated by PPS Board member Ron Sher, to explore the promise of Placemaking as a strategy for mending and strengthening American culture. The first workshop will take place this February in Seattle with additional ones planned for New York and Midwestern cities. These will lead up to a landmark Placemaking conference or "chautauqua" in 2006, which we believe will spark a powerful Placemaking movement the same way that Earth Day did for environmental concerns.

Please help us bring Placemaking to the table as a significant social and political issue by joining PPS as a member and becoming a placemaking activist in your own community. America needs Placemaking, and we need you to help Placemaking succeed.