For decades, there has been a deficiency of park space in the downtown core. Recognizing this gap, the City of Edmonton set aside 1.7 hectares of underdeveloped and vacant land in west downtown to be the future home of a central downtown park in 2026.
Parklets
Sub Categories: Parklets
Main Street Pocket Park
What started as a weedy, deserted eyesore became a beautiful, welcoming parklet in May 2021. Sponsored by Ben E. Keith Foods, the Main Street Pocket Park is a collaboration of love, sweat, and a desire to see downtown Little Rock continue to thrive and grow.
The Rise of Parklets
COVID forced diners outside and now many downtowns are exploring ways for the outdoor dining experience, via parklets, to become permanent. This presentation explores the process of finding the balance between creating a cost-effective and inviting space and needed government guardrails to ensure safety and access. Many see this emerging experience as a way for restaurants to survive economically and meet the growing customer desire.
Reimagining Outdoor Dining and Public Space
Discover how a downtown pedlet program in Montana and streeteries in Maryland promoted local placemaking efforts, created public spaces, and spurred an outside dining movement that increased business revenue, supported local business, and created jobs. Attendees will gain the knowledge of how to establish these programs in their communities, learn of the wider economic impact in a downtown commercial district and how these can be viable tools in the post-pandemic recovery process.
Advancing Places: Building on Recovery for Urban Place Management
As the COVID-19 vaccination rate increases, we are finally seeing more and more activity and vibrancy in our urban cores. What are the actions that UPMOs can take (or continue taking) to ensure that downtowns, city centers, and urban districts can recover more strongly?
Advancing Places: Parklets
As public space becomes increasingly more valuable, the community interest and benefits of parklets have steadily increased throughout 2020. Generally defined as people-friendly spaces which introduce street furnishings (in street) curbside, parklets are providing respite and generating revenues in their communities. Panelists will discuss the process to put together and maintain parklets of all kinds in their district.
Bloor Annex Parkettes
This project was initiated to improve the pedestrian experience along the popular Bloor Street and create new beautiful and environmentally conscious public places to sit, rest, and enjoy the outdoors. It involved the transformation of four underused paved right-of-ways into a series of new dynamic green spaces. These parkettes feature trees, pollinator-friendly gardens, wood decking, bike parking, and custom site furnishings.
New Development Meets a Neglected Neighborhood
Congress Heights Community Training and Development Corporation developed a framework for investing in a place-based inclusive economic and social development strategy centered around Congress Heights. It was built on extensive community engagement with a broad variety of stakeholders, from large developers to local youth, to city economic development officials, to local civic association members and more.
Creating a Physical Sense of Place by Enhancing Infrastructure
By seeking improvements to landscaping, pedestrian lighting, wayfinding, visual identity, and event infrastructure, the Cherry Creek North BID leveraged a massive infrastructure project to quite literally build a new sense of place for the area. Countless hours of stakeholder and community outreach were undertaken in addition to hiring the foremost experts in design, architecture, and planning.
Golden Triangle Neighborhood Plan
The Golden Triangle Neighborhood Plan, unanimously adopted in 2014, outlined a vision, goals, plan framework, and implementation strategies for the eclectic district’s evolution and continued improvement. The Neighborhood Plan set forth a comprehensive, holistic approach, weaving together a nuanced set of strategies that collectively fostered an eclectic, creative, connected, and livable Golden Triangle.