• Critical data points for my street

    One gaggle of girls, 270-plus trick-or-treaters, 20 pies, and one streetwise cat are vital statistics for this urban thoroughfare.
    Last week NACTO (National Association of City Transportation Officials) released a report that said data is key to the function of streets, now and in the future. Data may be more important, NACTO says, than pavement itself: Data is replacing concrete, asphalt and steel as the foundation of 21st...Read more

  • Orchestrating a cultural revival

    The transformation of a New Orleans retail box into a music hall with magnetic street presence is a remarkable urban achievement.
    Even a plain, vacant, late-20th Century discount department store building can be renovated into a compelling urban art space that celebrates the history of a neighborhood. That’s the lesson and achievement of the New Orleans Jazz Market. The 14,000 square foot former Gators store stood empty for...Read more

  • Ten years of marvelous Porchfest

    "Porches become stages, yards become venues, and radical generosity and good will rule the day."
    A couple recently went looking for a house in Ithaca, New York. When the real estate agent took them to Fall Creek, a 40-plus-block area north of downtown, she exclaimed "This is the Porchfest neighborhood!" while pointing out hand-painted signs in front of houses up and down the streets. What...Read more

  • Creative placemaking: Knowing when to get out of the way

    It seems everywhere I turn lately I stumble my way into a conversation on creative placemaking — people looking at the activation of public space as a way to further their personal and collective passions and pursuits. It’s heartening. I’m a firm believer that our taking of emotional ownership over...Read more