People-powered street design is getting a major boost with the help of two new tools that make it easy to reimagine unsatisfactory streetscapes.
Streetmix has some competition.
The first platform, presented by Alissa Walker, is Blockee, another Code for America product. "Blockee is really easy to use," she explains. "Just type in an address to generate a Google Street View image (or upload your own photo), and using the blissfully simple editor, drag and drop everything from vegetable gardens to food trucks to bike share kiosks into the street. Once you share your creation, the site even offers tips for how to make your vision a reality."
In Fast Company, Ben Schiller looks at Key to the Street, "a new citizen-planning tool" developed by Jessica Lowry. "Using your phone, it lets you take a photograph of a site, and immediately start sketching and filling in features. You can then share your concept with the city government, and allow others to riff on your ideas."
"Lowry is planning a pilot with Austin next January," notes Schiller. "Volunteers will use the tool to make diaries of what it's like to travel the city's public transit, and generate suggestions for improvements. A full version of Key to the Street should be available for other cities next March."
FULL STORY: This Awesome App Helps You Add "Civic Bling" to Your Street
Streetmix Socializes Street Design
OK, so we missed this relaunch for our just-published list of the Top Websites. Another remarkable venture from the fellows at civic tech leader Code for America, Streeetmix is an impressively user-friendly and attractive tool for designing streets.
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