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Reasons to be Cheerful
8 October 2020
Text / 1500-3000 Words
Oakland, California, United States
Oakland is making an effort to make city planning more equitable to include the needs of communities of color. "Esential Places" is the second iteration of a program that started off as "Slow Streets" and was criticized by local residents for catering to "white and moneyed interests." The initial attempt was informed by survey respondents who were overwhelmingly white and rich. Meetings with community members in distressed neighborhoods resulted in different traffic challenges and pedestrian needs. The shift in policy planning has led to safer intersections with no collisions at previously dangerous sites.
https://whyy.org/articles/open-streets-in-pennsylvanias-cities-closing-streets-to-cars-opening-them-to-cyclists-and-salsa-lessons
Irina Zhorov
WHYY
28 May 2015
Text / Under 800 Words
Bogotá is largely credited with originating the concept of “open streets” —where city roads are closed to car traffic and given over to people for fun and fitness—but it has grown beyond that city, surfacing in Pennsylvania.
https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2015/nov/09/unmasked-mexico-city-superhero-wrestling-pedestrian-rights
Dulce Ramos
Sophie Hughes
The Guardian
9 November 2015
Text / 1500-3000 Words
Clogged with traffic, crippled by poor infrastructure – the capital is notoriously hard to navigate on foot. Enter Peatónito, the activist fighting for safer streets.
http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2015/10/evanston-illinois-what-works-213282
Mark Peterson
Politico
22 October 2015
Text / Over 3000 Words
Cars heavily influence building planning in the U.S. due to a historical preference for suburbs, but a town in Illinois improved its economy by thinking like a city. They created transit-oriented development which prioritizes pedestrians and attracts millennials.
http://www.elpasotimes.com/story/news/health/2016/05/17/creating-environment-promotes-health/84040720
Lindsey Anderson
El Paso Times
18 May 2016
Text / 1500-3000 Words
In an attempt to address liver disease, diabetes, obesity and other health issues, Brownsville has launched a comprehensive, cohesive approach to promoting health, being named a model for other communities across the country.
http://nextcity.org/features/view/how-one-weekend-in-dallas-sparked-a-movement-for-urban-change
Mike Lydon
Next City
20 April 2015
Text / Under 800 Words
A Dallas urban neighborhood was dilapidated with abandoned storefronts and offered no vitality for pedestrians. A group of artists and community members created Build a Better Block, in which local artisans and small businesses took over a vacant block and transformed it for a limited time to encourage the ingredients for more permanent urban renewal.
http://www.yesmagazine.org/happiness/how-seattle-made-dark-alleys-safer-by-throwing-parties-20150826
Araz Hachadourian
Yes! Magazine
26 August 2015
Text / 800-1500 Words
Alleys in Seattle were once places of illicit, illegal, and unsanitary activity. The International Sustainability Institute in Seattle began organizing music and art events to bring in people, which, in turn, cleaned-up the crime and garbage. As an urban development strategy, adjacent vacant storefronts re-opened for business and beautification could be seen in new gardens.
http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/06/18/how-to-build-a-better-neighborhood
Tina Rosenberg
The New York Times
18 June 2014
Text / 1500-3000 Words
The Oak Cliff neighborhood in Dallas suffered from recession-closed businesses and crime. Then community members used placemaking, in which people shaped their own environment to improve the quality of life, and the concept of Build a Better Block, which was a pop-up event showcasing art, food, music, and local faire. The idea gives citizens a fresh look at the possibilities through which to transform the space in which they live, and it has attracted attention across the country and around the world.
http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2015/01/senior-living-initiatives-ill-take-manhattan-114227#.VYmluvlViko
Debra Bruno
Politico
13 January 2015
Text / Over 3000 Words
Cities tend to be dangerous and difficult places to live for older residents. A private public partnership in New York is catering to seniors through small changes in the city such as para-transit options and seniors-only hours at public establishments.
http://www.economist.com/blogs/economist-explains/2014/02/economist-explains-16
The Economist
The Economist
26 February 2014
Text / Under 800 Words
Sweden's "Vision Zero" program has used a comprehensive approach to infrastructure and regulation to drastically reduce traffic-related deaths, making Swedish roads the safest in the world.
http://www.treehugger.com/bikes/there-bicycle-economy-two-cities-find.html
A.K. Streeter
TreeHugger
2 October 2012
Text / Under 800 Words
Conventional merchants are afraid to lose parking spaces to bike parking or bike lanes. New York and Portland are finding cyclists increase local economies, and spend more money too.
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