This newsletter from the Project for Public Spaces [1] connects people who share a passion for public spaces to ideas and issues, news, quotes, places, and events from the placemaking movement.

Preparing Places for the Holiday Season [2]

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In most years, the holiday season is an important time for both communities and local businesses. But 2020 is no ordinary year.

On October 27th, Kelly Verel, Senior Director of Projects & Programs at Project for Public Spaces, will take part in a roundtable hosted by ULI Northwest Arkansas about how cities can make the holiday shopping season safe, fulfilling, and economically viable during a pandemic. Register now. [2]

Photo by Liza Voll Photography →

More Events & Opportunities

Sep. 30 • Webinar: Don’t Just Tick the Box, Think Outside It: Reimagining Public Engagement in Parks and Public Spaces [3], Park People

Oct. 1 • Call for Proposals: EDRA52Detroit: Just Environments [4], Environmental Design Research Association

Oct. 4 • Call for Proposals: Real Place City Challenge [5], Real Play Coalition & PlacemakingX

Oct. 5 • Webinar: Open streets or equitable cities: Who will write urbanism’s next chapter? [6] Park People

Oct. 9 • Call for Proposals: Winter Places: A Design Competition for Winter Placemaking [7], BenchCo

Oct. 31 • Survey: Economic Impact of COVID-19 on Farmers Markets [8], Farmers Market Coalition

Missed any of our past webinars on placemaking and public space? Watch the videos on our Events page. [9]

From the Blog

How an Atlanta Park is Connecting People to Housing through Place-Based Social Service Provision [10]
August 26, 2020

Sneak Peak: Mobycon on the Dutch Approach to Streets as Places [11]
August 21, 2020

Restoring the Joy of Parks in Communities Impacted by Natural Disasters with the Makers of Claritin® [12]
July 31, 2020

Essential Places: Warren Logan on Open Streets Beyond Brunch and Bike Lanes [13]
June 26, 2020

Equitable Development During & After COVID-19: Five Takeaways [14]
June 12, 2020

Public Space News

Open Streets to Stay Open: Mayor Bill de Blasio of New York City announced this week that the city's open streets and outdoor dining, which have become a major lifeline for the restaurant industry during the pandemic, will become "permanent and year-round" (Gothamist [15]).

Halloween Could Get Scary: Some cities are already warning that trick-or-treating could turn Halloween into a super spreader event, but communities are reluctant to cancel (CityLab [16]).

Winter Mobility Matters, Too: To keep our public spaces accessible and comfortable this winter, cities also need to consider how to help people get from place to place by walking, biking, or rolling (Streetsblog [17]).

A Pandemic without Public Space: What would it be like to live through the pandemic in a metropolis where most people do not have access to nearby public spaces? Hong Kong offers the answer (BBC [18]).

Putting Down Roots: In her new book, Main Street: How a City’s Heart Connects Us All, Dr. Mindy Fullilove argues that affirming a commitment to your community can offer an antidote to displacement and the psychological effects of “root shock” (Next City [19]).

Liability pliability: Why wasn't Uber charged in a fatal self-driving car crash? Authorities charged the vehicle's "safety driver" with criminal negligence, but not the company that developed the technology (Wired [20]).

Remembering a Civil Rights Legend: After the passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg last week, how can we create a memorial that isn't terrible (Curbed [21])?

Placemaking Playbook

Here's a roundup of 10 inspiring placemaking ideas from the week:

Traffic lights with life-saving “heat vision” (StreetsBlog [22])
Two new reports from the Urban Land Institute on the value of enhancing and expanding parks (Urbanland [23])
Solar-powered street lights and public wifi that make a Detroit neighborhood more self-sufficient (Model D [24])
A tour of neighborhood greenway improvements in Portland, OR (BikePortland [25])
A city-run recycling department store in Berlin, Germany (CityLab [26])
Pocket parks that double as sheltered bus stops in Detroit’s Northwest Goldberg neighborhood (Next City [27])
The overlooked history of segregation walls in the U.S. (Places Journal [28])
A program to improve disinvested parks without displacing nearby residents in Los Angeles (Shelterforce [29])
Five ways traditional economic development kills a sense of place (Proud Places [30])
The yurts, heat lamps, and other tactics that will save New York City restaurants this winter (New York Times [31])

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If you believe that community-powered public spaces are the backbone of a healthy society, please consider supporting our mission by making a donation [32] to Project for Public Spaces.

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