Rethinking Place Governance to Advance Equitable Development

The Boston Foundation's first Place Leadership Network process offers lessons in how to build place-based coalitions to advance the cause of equity.

2 minute read

December 14, 2020, 6:00 AM PST

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


Quincy Market

Sean Pavone / Shutterstock

The Boston Foundation is responding to the unequal economic, environmental, and cultural impacts of development in Boston by spearheading a new investments in "place governance," rather than the typical approach of placemaking interventions, through its Place Leadership Network program.

Philip Barash, a design fellow with the Boston Foundation, explains the Place Leadership Network program in a guest blog post for the Brookings Institution. The Foundation launched the Place Leadership Network in May 2019, announcing an application process to participate in the peer-learning initiative that eventually yielded eight teams.

"Participants would be compensated for their yearlong commitment and be eligible for unrestricted funding at the end of the year to support community-led placemaking and place-keeping agendas," explains Barash. Many of the selected teams represent organizations serving communities of color, are led by people of color, and work with small budgets. An article by Sandra Larson for Next City in July 2019 detailed the first cohort of the PLN program.

Barash includes a lot of detail about the curriculum of the nine-month PLN process, including how the curriculum changed as a result of the pandemic. The results were powerful, according to Barash, and point the direction for future efforts: "PLN demonstrated that community leaders can fully, confidently, and justly shape the futures of their shared places. Through the months, we kept hearing a similar refrain from the cohort: If Boston has any hope of altering development dynamics to center community interest and spatial justice, we need to continue shifting the power balance."

Wednesday, December 2, 2020 in Brookings

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Cover CM Credits, Earn Certificates, Push Your Career Forward

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

July 16, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Green vintage Chicago streetcar from the 1940s parked at the Illinois Railroad Museum in 1988.

Chicago’s Ghost Rails

Just beneath the surface of the modern city lie the remnants of its expansive early 20th-century streetcar system.

July 13, 2025 - WTTV

Blue and silver Amtrak train with vibrant green and yellow foliage in background.

Amtrak Cutting Jobs, Funding to High-Speed Rail

The agency plans to cut 10 percent of its workforce and has confirmed it will not fund new high-speed rail projects.

July 14, 2025 - Smart Cities Dive

Worker in yellow safety vest and hard hat looks up at servers in data center.

Ohio Forces Data Centers to Prepay for Power

Utilities are calling on states to hold data center operators responsible for new energy demands to prevent leaving consumers on the hook for their bills.

July 18 - Inside Climate News

Former MARTA CEO Collie Greenwood standing in front of MARTA HQ with blurred MARTA sign visible in background.

MARTA CEO Steps Down Amid Citizenship Concerns

MARTA’s board announced Thursday that its chief, who is from Canada, is resigning due to questions about his immigration status.

July 18 - WABE

Rendering of proposed protected bikeway in Santa Clara, California.

Silicon Valley ‘Bike Superhighway’ Awarded $14M State Grant

A Caltrans grant brings the 10-mile Central Bikeway project connecting Santa Clara and East San Jose closer to fruition.

July 17 - San José Spotlight