NEWS RELEASE

July 7, 2026 – Northwest Arkansas and New York, NY. The national nonprofit Project for Public Spaces announced today a renewed effort to transform underused outdoor public spaces in Northwest Arkansas into welcoming community gathering places and third places. The three-year partnership, supported by the Walton Family Foundation, will create more opportunities for residents to connect and build a sense of belonging. The $3.15M support from the Walton Family Foundation will invest directly in eight public space transformation projects through Community Placemaking Grants in the course of three years through $100K grants that will fund high-impact improvements shaped by community visioning. Local grantees will receive placemaking technical assistance from Project for Public Spaces, including community engagement, design and planning, and implementation support. Applications for the first cycle of grant proposals are now open through August 3, 2026 to select the first four grantees, with a second cycle launching this fall to award the remaining four projects. This renewed funding extends the partnership between the organization and the foundation, which has resulted in six projects accomplished through $480,000 in implementation funding and over 2,400 hours in technical assistance hours since 2023.

‍About the Three-Year Partnership

In addition to the projects themselves, the $3.15M initiative advances key priorities of PPS’s 2026-2028 Strategic Plan. The initiative will also build lasting leadership through local and national convenings and virtual training opportunities from Project for Public Spaces, directly supporting its commitment to Build the Field by equipping community-driven public champions with tools and networks they need. A regional evaluation component of the work will assess the impact of all projects supported by Community Placemaking Grants in Northwest Arkansas to date, translating findings into actionable insights that will be shared across PPS’s larger partner network, advancing its priority to Drive Innovation by demonstrating and disseminating new approaches to maximizing the social and civic benefits of public space. To ensure long-term impact and strengthen PPS’s organizational sustainability, the grant will also fund the addition of a dedicated staff member, expanding the nonprofit’s capacity to deliver deeper, more meaningful work. This direct investment supports PPS’s goal of Growing its Capacity by strengthening its team and operations to fulfill its mission. 

"Communities know what they need. Over the past four years, Community Placemaking Grants have allowed us and our local partners in Northwest Arkansas to reimagine their spaces, bring neighbors together, and transform the places they love," said Elena Madison, Project for Public Spaces’ Director of Projects. 

“We are deeply grateful for this increased investment that lets us dream bigger. More people building deeper connections, more shared spaces where local life thrives, more communities with a stronger sense of belonging and a stake in the places right on their doorstep.”

‍Community Placemaking Grant Application Process

There will be two grant cycles awarding a total of eight U.S.-based 501c(3) nonprofits or local government agencies located in Benton and Washington Counties in Northwest Arkansas who are looking to create inviting spaces for all. The selection will be based on several criteria, including a commitment to social cohesion and inclusion, strength of community relationships, and project viability. 

In addition to $100K in implementation funding to create spaces that bring people together, selected grant recipients will receive technical assistance from Project for Public Spaces in placemaking, planning, design, procurement, regulatory navigation, programming, and long-term management to ensure projects are feasible and sustainable.

 Applications for the first cycle of grant proposals to select the first four grantees are now open through August 3, 2026 at 11:59pm ET. To learn more and apply, visit www.pps.org/community-placemaking-grants. 

Those eligible are welcome to join an informational webinar led by Project for Public Spaces on Tuesday, July 14, 2026 at 12pm by registering here.

A second application cycle for proposals will open this fall to award the remaining four projects.

Launched in fall of 2021, Project for Public Spaces’ Community Placemaking Grants enable US-based nonprofits and government agencies to address inequality of access by working directly with local stakeholders to transform public spaces or co-create new ones. Grants supported through Walton Family Foundation have already completed six public space transformation projects:

The Overlook at Mount Sequoyah Center in Fayetteville;
The Front Porch at the Shiloh Museum of Ozark History in Springdale;
An amphitheater at Pea Ridge Park in Pea Ridge;
Park features at the Historic Twin Springs Park in Siloam Springs;
A traffic garden and enhanced outdoor space at Leverett Elementary School in Fayetteville; and
An outdoor gathering space at Farmington Public Library in Farmington. 

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‍About Project for Public Spaces

Celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2025, Project for Public Spaces has spent the past five decades bringing some of the most successful public places in the world to life. Today, we remain committed to putting community participation at the center of everything we do, from placemaking partnerships with corporations and foundations to our workshops, trainings, conferences, and more. Our interdisciplinary team has helped over 3,500 communities in 52 countries create inclusive places that change our society for the better. Together, we can build a world where every public space is community-powered. Learn more at PPS.org.

‍About Walton Family Foundation

The Walton Family Foundation is at its core, a family-led foundation. Three generations of the descendants of our founders, Sam and Helen Walton, and their spouses, work together to lead the foundation and create access to opportunity for people and communities. We work in three areas: improving education, protecting rivers and oceans and the communities they support, and investing in our home region of Northwest Arkansas and the Arkansas-Mississippi Delta. To learn more, visit waltonfamilyfoundation.org.

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‍CONTACT

‍Anne Tan-Detchkov
‍Director of Communications & Marketing
Project for Public Spaces
‍atan@pps.org
‍(212) 620-5660