Placemaking in Chicago

PPS partners with the Chicago Metropolitan Planning Council on an exciting new publication and series of community workshops

By Robin Lester, Manager, Marketing and Communications
rlester@pps.org

It’s no surprise Barack Obama moved to Chicago to learn about community organizing; this lively city is second to none when it comes to an appealing sense of place and citizens dedicated to their neighborhoods.

PPS recently teamed up with Chicago's venerable Metropolitan Planning Council (MPC) to create a Chicago-specific Placemaking campaign designed to guide the Placemaking process at the grassroots level. The program aims to capitalize on the city's history of citizen action and inspire residents to "do it themselves" when it comes to making improvements in their neighborhoods.


PPS Placemaking workshops in Chicago drew a diverse range of residents from throughout the city

PPS provided training to both local officials and community leaders regarding strategies for building consensus and seeking outside (and sometimes unlikely) partnerships that make Placemaking possible. Participants also took part in PPS's signature Place Game on Chicago's South Side to learn how simple it is for individuals or small groups to effectively evaluate public spaces in their community and come up with practical, simple and cost-effective ideas for improvement.

The partnership resulted in the recently-published Guide to Placemaking in Chicago, which provides basic instruction on Placemaking at the local level and highlights specific examples of citizen-led Placemaking that has already led to sweeping improvements in Chicago neighborhoods. The book encourages citizen action and provides a framework to engage local businesses and government in helping create positive change.


Workshop participants map out their favorite destinations, as well as those with the most potential for improvement.

A free, downloadable copy of A Guide to Placemaking in Chicago, as well as further information on our Placemaking partnership with the Metropolitan Planning Council is available online at www.placemakingchicago.com.

Click here to read one of the Guide’s Chicago-specific case studies!