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  Fred Kent, a community activist who had organized the 1970 Earth Day events in New York City, founds Project for Public Spaces to build upon William H. Whyte's pioneering studies of how people use public spaces. He had worked with Whyte on a number of projects. Architect Don Miles, Director of the Office of Midtown Planning for the City of New York, and Bob Cook, an attorney specializing in urban issues, were also instrumental in the formation of PPS.


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  Environmental designer Kathy Madden joins PPS after working for the New York City Parks Department on a special street furniture project. Today, she is vice-president and runs the parks program.


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  Rockefeller Center provides free office space to PPS's staff of five in exchange for advising its Real Estate Marketing Department on how to improve the buildings' public spaces. See Greatest Hits.

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  In the first of many collaborations with the National Park Service, PPS evaluates Brooklyn's Jacob Riis Park and Gateway National Recreation Area.

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  PPS films President Carter's Inaugural Parade as part of a pedestrian study of Pennsylvania Avenue, part of the successful preservation and revitalization campaign for the street that has been carried out by the Pennsylvania Avenue Development Corporation since 1972.

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  Architect Steve Davies joins the staff of PPS to work on improvements to West 46th Street in Manhattan. Today he is vice-president and runs the markets program and international projects.

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  PPS moves to corner of 6th Avenue and 31st Street. The new location is so noisy that when staff members make calls, people on the other end often ask if they are calling from a phone booth.

Behind the Scenes

After a hard day's work, it feels great to relax with an ice cold beer... or a banana.

(Pictured: Arne Abramson and Fred Kent.)