cnikitin@pps.org
Cynthia Nikitin serves as both Vice President for Public Buildings and Downtowns and the director of the Civic Centers Program. Cynthia has earned a reputation as a persuasive advocate for Placemaking as an approach to city planning and urban design. She has striven to serve as a compelling voice in support of more sustainable towns and cities nation-wide.
With a portfolio of more than 150 projects, Cynthia’s technical expertise stretches from the development of downtown main street master plans and corridor enhancement projects, to the creation of transit station area plans, and public art master plans for major cities. This includes facilitating approximately 40 public workshops, visioning sessions, and public meetings annually.
At PPS, Cynthia has been instrumental in shaping PPS’ Public Buildings Initiative with the General Services Administration. The multi-million dollar program provides technical assistance for the redesign of federal plazas and public spaces nationwide. The innovative program also provides for research, training, networking and web resources for architects and building managers. She has also contributed to developing training for transportation and community planning professionals (including Context Sensitive Solutions courses for New York and New Jersey State Departments of Transportation, and PPS’s “How to Turn a Place Around” training course), and has presented numerous academic lectures and teachings.
Before joining PPS in 1991, Cynthia worked as a corporate art consultant for The Art Collaborative in New York, was head curator and gallery manager at the Zenith Gallery in Washington, DC, and worked on the selection and commissioning of artists for airports and corporate centers at Works of Art for Public Spaces, a public art consulting firm in New York.
Education
Clark University, Bachelor of Arts: Art History and Comparative Politics, 1981.
New York University, Masters of Arts: Arts Management and Urban Planning, 1991.
Professional Affiliations
Member American Public Transit Agency Urban Design Working Group – 2007 to present
Grant reviewer for the NEA Challenge America Fast Track Grants – ongoing
Mentor, Douglas Redd Fellowship Program, Ford Foundation and Partners for Livable Communities, 2008-2009
Board Member Ex-Officio, The Bronx River Art Center, Bronx, NY
Selected Lectures, Presentations and Panel Discussions
Lectures, Presentations, Interviews, and Panel Discussions
Presentation, “Principles and Practice in Placemaking for Parks,” International Garden Symposium, Seoul, South Korea, March 2010.
Presentation, “Crime Prevention from Across the World: Taking Stock, Evaluation, and Future Perspectives”, 15th Anniversary International Centre for the Prevention of Crime, December 8th & 9th 2009,Montreal, QC, Canada
Keynote Presenter, “Promoting Public Spaces as Destinations,” Korean Tourism Board’s Annual Knowledge Forum, Incheon City, South Korea, November 2009
Walk 21 New York, “Tools for Public Participation in Transit Planning,” Panelist, October 2009
Keynote Presenter, Glocal 2009, LAN 21 Network Agenda Conference, Cascais, Portugal September 23, 2009
Keynote Presenter, Walk On Workshop, Brantford Ontario, September 9, 2009 and Blind River, Ontario Canada, May 2009
Keynote Address, Imagine Miami Changemaker Conference II, Miami Florida, July 2009
Lecturer,”Public Space Design Guidelines,” Korea Design Foundation, Seoul South
Ontario Library Association SuperConference, Highlighted Speaker, January 2009, Toronto Ontario Canada
Walk 21 Barcelona, Walkability Conference Program Committee Member, Plenary Speaker, April -October 2008, Barcelona Spain
Civic Institutions as Community Anchors presentation, International Downtown Association annual conference, Calgary Alberta Canada, September 2008
Context Sensitive Solutions: Designing Transportation Projects for People and Places, “CSS and Transit,” Denver, CO July 2008
Keynote Address, Saskatchewan Library Association Annual Meeting, Regina SK Canada, May 2008
Keynote Address, British Columbia Library Association Annual Meeting, Richmond BC Canada April 2008
TRB Annual Conference, Thinking Beyond the Station, January 2008, Washington, DC
Railvolution, Thinking Beyond the Station Presentation, November 2007, Miami, FL
Facilitator of a one day walkability training workshop for City Councillors from around Canada at the Walk 21 Conference, October 2007 Toronto, ON
Presentation, Transportation Research Board, Transportation and Land use Conference, Denver, CO, August 2007
Selected Publications
“From Cow Town to Our Town: Public Art Bridges the Urban to Suburban Transect,” Public Art Review, November 2008.
“Achieving Great Federal Public Spaces,” General Services Administration, Washington, DC Spring 2007.
“Review of ‘Environmentally Concerned’ at the Bronx River Art Center, Bronx, NY,” Sculpture Magazine, April 2001.
“Review of ‘Premises: Invested Spaces in Visual Arts, Architecture and Design from France,’ Guggenheim Museum Soho, New York,” Sculpture Magazine, January 2000.
“Making Public Art Work,” (a review of key public participation methods and practices), Sculpture Magazine, July 2000.
“How Community and Transportation Partnerships are Shaping America: Parts I and II,” American Public Transit Association and American Association of State and Highway Transportation Officials, July 1999 and September 2000.
“Art in Transit Catalogue 1999,” for the Bi-State Development Agency’s Arts in Transit Program, October 1999.