13 Small Ideas with Big Potential for Cities

Making no little plans is all well and good, but sometimes it is the smallest ideas that can have the biggest impacts for cities and neighborhoods.

1 minute read

September 21, 2014, 11:00 AM PDT

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


Glenwood Green Acres, Philadelphia

Tony Fischer / Flickr

In previewing the events of the Urban Innovation Exchange (September 24-26 in Detroit), Claire Nelson and John Notarianni share 13 small ideas from "passionate people working on the ground, doing the creative heavy lifting to make their neighborhoods and cities better."

The 13 choices are taken from a much larger roster of conference attendees and presenters, but they include the following (and click through the story to see the rest):

The DC3 Presents the Speakers Bureau: The Alley Project from Three Words on Vimeo.

Saturday, September 20, 2014 in Flying Kite

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.

June 18, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Two people walking away from camera through pedestrian plaza in street in Richmond, Virginia with purple and white city bus moving in background.

Vehicle-related Deaths Drop 29% in Richmond, VA

The seventh year of the city's Vision Zero strategy also cut the number of people killed in alcohol-related crashes by half.

June 17, 2025 - WRIC

Two small wooden one-story homes in Florida with floodwaters at their doors.

As Trump Phases Out FEMA, Is It Time to Flee the Floodplains?

With less federal funding available for disaster relief efforts, the need to relocate at-risk communities is more urgent than ever.

June 16, 2025 - Governing

San Francisco Muni bus on street, line 14 with MISSION - Ferry Plaza" on front marquee.

How to Fund SF’s Muni Without Cutting Service

Three solutions for bridging the San Francisco transit agency’s budget gap without reducing service for transit-dependent riders.

10 minutes ago - San Francisco Chronicle

Blue Austin public transit bus with graphic reading "I ride to keep the city clean and earth happy."

Austin Tests Self-Driving Bus

Autonomous buses could improve bus yard operations for electric fleets, according to CapMetro.

2 hours ago - Smart Cities Dive

Buildings in downtown Springfield, Missouri at dusk.

Missouri Tenants Sue Housing Owners Over Tax Credit Program

In Springfield, Missouri, organized tenants have filed a lawsuit against the past and present owners of their tax credit–financed properties, claiming that in exercising an opt-out provision they violated both state and federal requirements.

3 hours ago - Shelterforce Magazine