Lessons From Savannah

Savannah, Georgia is an elegant southern belle of a city. Susan Henderson looks at some of its lessons, along with ideas for future study.

1 minute read

April 6, 2017, 7:00 AM PDT

By Hazel Borys


Georgia

Peter Leahy / Shutterstock

"Savannah, Georgia is arguably one of, if not the most, beautiful cities in the United States. Although I lived there for a while 25 years ago, on a recent visit I was struck by the many placemaking lessons we can learn from this lovely city. In anticipation of the 2018 CNU Congress in the city, I started taking some notes of subjects I want to explore next year."

"Much has been written on the Oglethorpe Plan of Savannah, and architects and planners continue to be enlightened by the framework of public space as the plan’s first priority. The dedication of four civic parcels – trust lots – on each square, assured each neighborhood would be served by educational and religious institutions. (Reiter, B., 2016, Savannah City Plan)"

Henderson looks at lessons Savannah has to teach on the power of a plan, civic space and civic buildings, the public realm, and private frontages.

Barnard Street, Savannah, Georgia. Image credit: Susan Henderson, CreativeCommons ShareAlike License with Attribution to www.placemakers.com.

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