• The Pink Zone – where small is possible

    The Pink Zone is a tool for concentrating resources to enable small-scale, community-centered revitalization. It defines an area of focus, leverages a suite of tools, and provides a community platform to gather resources and make commitments.
    Note: This article was written as part of the Project for Lean Urbanism and edited for Public Square . A Pink Zone — an area where the red tape is lightened — is the locus for implementation of Lean Urbanism strategies and improvements,. The Pink Zone identifies a specific area where new protocols...Read more

  • Detroit selects ‘Pink Zone’ partners

    City planning department, with funds from the Knight Foundation, hires teams to explore reducing red tape in development projects.
    Detroit’s planning department has selected three design firms to help envision revitalizing the city’s vacant commercial strips while reducing the bureaucratic hurdles that can stand in the way of redevelopment. Farr Associates/PlaceMakers/CHA, SmithGroupJJR and Laavu were selected from among 38...Read more

  • Finding Tucson's lovable places

    Whenever we are writing character-based zoning, one of the first things we do is a regional tour to analyze the DNA of the most loved places. Places cannot be resilient unless they can be loved.
    I was inspired and delighted last week by working in Tucson and Marana, Arizona . Whenever we are writing character-based zoning , one of the first things we do is a regional tour to analyze the DNA of the most loved places . Places cannot be resilient unless they can be loved. It’s one of the...Read more

  • New blocks and streets repair a Sunbelt city

    Here's how Orlando replaced a hole in the city with connective tissue.
    In the mid-1990s, the City of Orlando faced the closure of the 1,100-acre Naval Training Center, two miles from downtown. The easiest reuse option for the land would have included big box stores, an office park, and/or suburban housing pods. The easy route would have provided more of what the...Read more