New Revitalization Toolkit for Smaller Legacy Cities

Not every Legacy City has the size and cultural cache of a Pittsburgh or a New Orleans to aid in its recovery, but there are resources available for smaller cities examining pragmatic revitalization strategies.

1 minute read

May 8, 2018, 7:00 AM PDT

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


Main Street bridge crossing the St. Joseph's River

Alessandro Pietr / Shutterstock

A recently released toolkit offers guidance for smaller legacy cities looking to revitalize through government, nonprofit, philanthropic, and private-sector action.

The new toolkit is based on the "Revitalizing America's Smaller Legacy Cities" report, created in partnership between the Greater Ohio Policy Center and the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy in 2017. The new toolkit offers online resources to support local leaders in implementing a revitalization vision, including:

  • Tools, including how-to guides and checklists;
  • Programs, often with examples of replicable initiatives; and
  • Background information, which includes white papers and websites that further explain the strategy, program, or tool.

The toolkit also focuses on case studies from the model communities of South Bend, Indiana and Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

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