At Project for Public Spaces, Inc. we think successful public spaces are the key to the future of cities. By “successful spaces” we mean spaces that are used, but what we find more often than not, in the centers of cities, are some very bad spaces – meaning that they are pretty much devoid of opportunities to do anything – even though they look good. We have also found that the least successful spaces and buildings are often the newest ones.
At Project for Public Spaces, Inc. we think successful public spaces are the key to the future of cities. By "successful spaces" we mean spaces that are used, but what we find more often than not, in the centers of cities, are some very bad spaces – meaning that they are pretty much devoid of opportunities to do anything – even though they look good. We have also found that the least successful spaces and buildings are often the newest ones.
We have seen this both in the United States and in Europe. Some of the most popular destinations in several cities in Europe are also some of the most brutal and dehumanizing buildings and spaces for people who encounter them. For example, the new Contemporary Art Museum in Vienna, the Mozart Museum in Salzburg, the new in the center of Munich and the Branly Museum in Paris are all touted as major destinations but at the ground floor they are dead. The main question I have is why can't we build buildings and public spaces that are both "must see" buildings but that also add to people's experience of the ground floor of the cities around them? We would like to develop a new agenda around "The Architecture of Place". And we need ideas about how this could happen.
Vienna's new Contemporary Art Museum
The Mozart Museum in Salzburg
Munich's new central Synagogue
Depopulation Patterns Get Weird
A recent ranking of “declining” cities heavily features some of the most expensive cities in the country — including New York City and a half-dozen in the San Francisco Bay Area.
California Exodus: Population Drops Below 39 Million
Never mind the 40 million that demographers predicted the Golden State would reach by 2018. The state's population dipped below 39 million to 38.965 million last July, according to Census data released in March, the lowest since 2015.
Chicago to Turn High-Rise Offices into Housing
Four commercial buildings in the Chicago Loop have been approved for redevelopment into housing in a bid to revitalize the city’s downtown post-pandemic.
Google Maps Introduces New Transit, EV Features
It will now be easier to find electric car charging stations and transit options.
Ohio Lawmakers Propose Incentivizing Housing Production
A proposed bill would take a carrot approach to stimulating housing production through a grant program that would reward cities that implement pro-housing policies.
Chicago Awarded $2M Reconnecting Communities Grant
Community advocates say the city’s plan may not do enough to reverse the negative impacts of a major expressway.
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