Neighborhood Change and Why Public Participation Matters

We have a problem in this country. While some urban communities are facing unprecedented growth, the benefits of this economic development success are not necessarily being spread evenly around. More to the point, as cities like New York continue to grow and attract residents and investors, those who have weathered the ups and downs - both residents and small business owners - are increasingly finding themselves at risk of displacement. Frankly, this should come as no surprise. The market pressures to find higher paying tenants (both residential and commercial) and the rewards for finding loopholes in the rules that protect residential tenants in particular have never been greater. (See this fantastic series in the NYTimes that discusses the many challenges tenants face).

We are a victim of our own success. The problem is that none of this is in the long term best interest of our urban places. A city where those who provide critical services are unable to get to work without a long commute, or crippling transportation expenses that rob them of time and ability to manage their homes or finances, all while incurring child care costs that they can already ill afford, is a city that squanders the resources of its citizens. Not only that, but the situation deeply undermines their ability to participate in the very decision making process that affects the urban investments that potentially impact and improve their daily lives.

Our client, Livingston County, NY gathered hundreds of residents to discuss downtown recommendations in November 2017. Great staff, long-standing community relationships, and strategic outreach were key to ensuring that a broad section of residents were in attendance. For those unable to attend, the County issued an electronic survey to get additional feedback.






Why does this matter to our work? 
In our analysis of place we lean heavily on both qualitative and quantitative data to inform our assessments and recommendations. But what happens when only a small segment of a community participates in that process? People who are barely making ends meet don't have time to participate in most community planning efforts. Too frequently, the plans that inform resource allocation and public policy are not necessarily reflective of the community as a whole, but rather a small subsection of those who have the time, resources and inclination to participate. For those of us engaged in community planning efforts, we must do better and we must explore innovative ways to engage communities on their terms, not ours. It is hard work and sometimes the budget to engage communities and residents is simply not there.

Another challenge, particularly for the work we do along commercial corridors, is that the success of a business is inextricably rooted in market realities that are hard for us to change. With higher income residents come opportunities for both existing and new businesses. Generally this is good news for businesses who now have more customers with more discretionary spending. But in some markets, "improvements" come at the expense of those living there. As rents and property values increase, neighborhoods inevitably change. In New York City where I serve as one of thirteen City Planning Commissioners, I witness firsthand the skepticism that many community members bring to their public testimony - concerns that improvements that accompany rezoning efforts are precursors to displacement. The question that is often posed is "why didn't we get park improvements or streetscape improvements or really any kinds of improvements BEFORE?" As a result, residents often find themselves in the strange position of rejecting improvements that they themselves acknowledge would make their communities and lives better. But what good are those improvements if they are no longer able to afford to live there? That is the rub.

As we think about rapid changes in technology we have new opportunities to challenge our methods of engagement and explore ways to ensure that community planning is more effectively than ever before. Some great best practices can be found in the annual awards given by the American Planning Association. Making sure these great examples are not simply the exception to the rule will take time and resources - but most off all it will take a commitment to participatory planning that to date has been in limited supply.

Farmers Market as Downtown Revitalization Tool

Nur Asri is an associate at Larisa Ortiz Associates

Fall is upon us and for LOA that means the work on a second round of New York State Downtown Revitalization Initiatives is set to begin. In the past year, our work has brought us to smaller, more rural towns upstate and around the country and with that, came many visits to local farmers markets. Farmers markets, or “multi-stall markets at which farmer-producers sell agricultural products directly to the general public at a central/ fixed location” are not a new phenomenon. In fact, marketplaces have been a key economic, cultural, and social component of villages, towns, and cities for thousands of years. Today, smaller downtowns, are seeing a resurgence of farmers markets as economic revitalization tools, particularly in areas with existing agricultural assets. In this post, we discuss the potential benefits that can be reaped from a downtown farmers market and actions that can be taken to ensure the most effective implementation of one.

Farmers markets are community porches

Many of the farmers markets we have observed in our work, whether intended or not, have evolved into the “front porch” of the community and function as key gathering places. Residents and visitors from various walks of life convene at the market through a common interest for fresh, local produce resulting in unique social interactions.

Morganton Farmers Market at the retail core. Photo: LOA

In some cases, farmers markets have also been key in activating formerly underutilized spaces downtown and turning these into active public spaces. From old warehouses to underused parking lots and vacant land, farmers markets have the power to activate these spaces by introducing a new public use and attracting new users of the space.

In Morganton, NC, for example, hosts a mini farmers market every Wednesday in the warm months on a field that was simply sitting vacant by the retail core of the downtown. Meanwhile, in Springfield, OR, a year-round farmers market is hosted in a former church property that was purchased and refurbished with a 3,000 SF event space.

Farmers markets promote health and wellness

The seasonal freshness of fruits and vegetables sold at farmers markets, the in-built nutritional value of goods sold, and the direct linkage made between food producers and consumers, makes the markets fitting platforms for health promotion and nutrition education.  In addition, consumers around the world are also gaining a new appreciation for and connection to their food producers, so farmers markets are the much-needed platforms to further grow support for local food systems.

In addition, farmers markets that offer SNAP programs also expand low-income households’ access to healthy foods, ensuring that all local residents are able to reap benefits from the healthy offerings at the markets and raising nutritional levels among low-income households. Additional free programming such as cooking and nutrition classes offered at farmers markets can often expand the accessibility of healthy local produce by educating those households that are unfamiliar with preparing fresh, wholesome meals.

Now, for the economic benefits.

Farmers markets are visitor attractions

Farmers markets are also great downtown anchors that attract hoards of residents and tourists for hours weekly. Naturally, this raises foot traffic that may otherwise be lacking in smaller downtowns. In Springfield, OR, for example, the famers market attracted an estimated 30,000 people and more than 40 regular vendors in its first year of opening alone.

In a smaller, rural downtown, this regular stream of pedestrian traffic to the farmers market translates to foot traffic into neighboring stores and restaurants, especially when the farmers markets are held on weekends and customers dwell times are more flexible.

Farmers markets add to downtown retail mix

With more traditional farmers markets that host fresh produce and specialty food vendors, these markets essentially act as the local grocery store. In more rural parts of the country where the grocery store is typically a big box Walmart or Wegmans or Food Lion that requires driving 15 minutes outside of downtown, the farmers market can be a solution to bridging a hyperlocal retail gap.  Its location, typically in a downtown parking lot, means that it is far more convenient for residents in the area to grab a carton of milk or spare eggs. Not to mention, the freshness of pastries and bread sold at the farmers market compared to the large grocery store.

As consumer preferences shift, even grocery stores are replacing their aisles with even more fresh, local produce and organic goods – goods that are already filling the wooden crates at farmers markets. In 2008, local food sales were estimated to be close to $5 billion and farmers markets are naturally aligned to leverage the growth in this demand (if it's not already being met!).

Farmers markets function as business incubators and accelerators

From Farmers Market vendor to.....

Finally, and most importantly, farmers markets cut the middlemen who typically distribute farmers’ and artisans’ goods, therefore raising profit margins for the producers. The markets also act as business incubators by providing the opportunities for producers and makers to first test products directly with consumers and get real time feedback thru product samples – all at a much, much lower cost than either setting up a storefront or selling online. The Fresh Friday Farmers Market in Allentown, PA, for example, has provided increased business opportunities for local farms and food businesses proliferating in the LeHigh Valley.

...Storefront! This is Cedar Rapids Whiskey Sauce Co. in Ely

Upon finessing and growing the demand for their products and services, many farmers market vendors have then grown big enough to be able to set up brick-and-mortar stores downtown. For downtowns that lost retail tenants in the last economic downturn, this business incubation function of farmers markets may be ideal to helping fill those storefront spaces. For example, in Richmond, VA, a vacant storefront that was formerly occupied by a bakery was recently bought over by a pastry chef who sells pastries and baked goods at the local St Stephens Farmers Market. Although the owner will essentially be replacing goods that were already on offer by the previous tenant, the farmers market start has enabled her to refine her merchandise selection based on early consumer feedback.

Other examples of farmers market vendors that have moved on to brick-and-mortar include Blacksauce Kitchen that made its start at the JFX Farmers' Market in Baltimore before recently opening a shop that serves customers one day a week. In Iowa, Cedar Rapids Whiskey Sauce Co last year opened a shop on Dows Street in small downtown Ely after making its start at local farmers' markets and several HyVee grocery store locations.

How to ensure farmers markets really become downtown revitalization tools:

Unfortunately, not all farmers markets have been powerful downtown revitalization tools. There are a number of steps that need to be taken to ensuring that the benefits we discussed above can be achieved.

Site your farmers market in or near your retail core

Geneseo, NY Farmers Market off Main Street by local theater.

Firstly, the location of the farmers market is crucial to driving spillover foot traffic from the market to downtown storefronts. If the market isn’t located in the retail core of downtown, shoppers are unlikely to stop by adjacent storefronts after perusing the market. In Morganton, NC, for instance, before introducing a mini market on Wednesdays on an empty field at the retail core, hosted its weekly farmers market 0.5 mile away, far away enough (given the hotter climate and elevations) that customers passing through the farmers market would have to get in a car before being able to get to downtown. And we all know, once your customer gets in the car, they’re as good as lost. The farmers market wasn’t quite an anchor for downtown businesses until it was introduced right smack in the retail core.

Locating farmers markets in the retail core will be especially crucial for downtowns that have residential uses located at the retail core or within walking distance of downtown. Having direct and easy access to a large residential shopping demand is crucial to the success of vendors, and of course if vendors succeed, they are likely to return to sell goods, maintaining the critical mass of vendors needed to attract customers and ensuring overall sustainability of the farmers markets.

Provide supportive transportation infrastructure

City of Palo Alto installed bike racks on the
street used for weekly farmers market.

If your downtown is dense and walkable and the bulk of your customers are residents who already live in the vicinity, then supportive infrastructure to help customers get to the farmers market might include wide sidewalks, pedestrian crossings, wayfinding signage, bike lanes and bike parking facilities, and bus stops.

On the other hand, if your downtown is small and much more rural with most customers only able to arrive by car, then convenient and well-maintained parking lots should also be made available to support a “park once” downtown for customers and vendors to visit the farmers market and other businesses all at once without having to worry about moving their cars.

Complement the market with programming

Portland, OR Market Music event showcases local acts.

Educational community programs and local music acts are some activities that accompany farmers markets across the country and these are great ways to further engage local residents and visitors that pass through. The best way to find out what types of programs the local community needs is to simply carry out an intercept consumer survey.

At the same time, programs should also be organized to help vendors grow their business and following. The Neighborhood Economic Development Corporation in Springfield, OR, organizer of the downtown farmers market is an owner of properties downtown. Once vendors at the market reach a stage of expansion that requires a larger and more regular storefront, NEDCO is able to rent spaces it owns at lower rates to support these businesses.

Operate the market during accessible hours

Depending on the downtown and the number of major employers in the area, it may be effective to hold farmers markets on weekdays. In such cases, vendors may leverage the existing daytime worker market demand during lunchtime. On the other hand, if the weekday daytime population downtown doesn’t exist, then a weekend market would make more sense. 

Actively brand and market

Strong local campaigns to bring awareness to and promote the farmers market are crucial to establishing a new downtown anchor. In Livingston County, NY, (where we’re about to embark on a Countywide Commercial District Assessment), a Find It In Livingston campaign encourages shoppers to seek local produce and goods by actively announcing where and when downtown farmers markets happen on the county economic development website. The Charles City Downtown Farmers Market similarly participates in the ‘Buy Fresh, Buy Local’ campaign, a comprehensive marketing program for farmers selling directly to consumers, restaurants, grocery stores and other institutions.

Ensure strong administrative capacity

As with all downtown economic revitalization initiatives, administrative capacity and resources are required to sustain farmers markets. In addition to support from the City, buy-in from local residents is essential to carrying out a successful market. While the City is able to support the market in procuring a vacant site or supplying sanitation facilities and power, support from local businesses and individuals will ensure sustained customer traffic and vendor participation.

The non-economic and economic benefits of farmers markets might tempt you to implement one downtown. However, they must not be assumed to be simple revitalization tools. Farmers markets are complex efforts that often require the cooperation of a wide range of stakeholders (existing business owners, residents, community leaders), thoughtful planning, extensive programming and marketing, and of course funding! Who knows what this second round of funding from New York State will bring to the downtowns we’ll be working with this Fall but we will be keeping a look out for those farmers markets and keeping our eyes peeled for what works for them!

If you already have a farmers market downtown and are looking to assess its impact, take a look at this economic impact study of the farmers market in Downtown El Paso: http://downtownelpaso.com/economic-ripples-felt-from-downtown-artist-and-farmers-market/

Mall to Mixed Use

Nur is an associate at Larisa Ortiz Associates

Over the last year we’ve heard story after story report on the closing of large anchor retailers such as Macy’s, Sears, and J.C. Penney and how the trend might result in another wave of regional mall closures. Analysts from across the board are predicting hundreds more shopping malls in the US to shut down as a result of being unable to find enough retailers to replace ones that have gone, leaving millions of square feet of developed but vacant commercial space.

At the same time, we have also seen story after story emerge of mall owners getting innovative and replacing traditional department stores with a slew of entertainment uses and non-conventional tenants such as offices and urgent healthcare clinics.

It is not surprising then that, now more than ever, shopping mall owners are also going to the extreme of complete overhaul of their properties to create mixed-use neighborhoods as another solution to save themselves. The mall-to-mixed use redevelopment movement started more than two decades ago with the conversion of the Boca Mall in Boca Raton, FL into a mixed-use neighborhood consisting of residential homes, office spaces, shops, and restaurants.  We first wrote about this transformative project in 2015, along with another early project Villa Italia in Lakewood, Colorado which was transformed into the neighborhood of Belmar in 2004. Since then, various other shopping mall owners have taken the same leap in redeveloping their properties into mixed-use communities. Today, we take a closer look at two more recent and still underway projects – City Centre, Houston, Texas and Promenade 2035, San Fernando Valley, California. We look at what it really takes to get a giant mall redevelopment to take off.

City Centre, a mixed use urban development with office buildings, multifamily residential homes, brownstones, hotels, restaurants and retail, and conference spaces, sits atop the former Town & Country mall on the edge of metropolitan Houston area. The regional shopping mall which opened in the early 1980s, closed following the departure of anchor department stores J.C.Penney (a story we’ve heard before).

Like any typical mixed-use development, City Centre is centered on a public square and features a grid-like street network and a pedestrian-friendly environment. Financing it, however, was not so typical. The project was developed by Midway, Cos. a real estate investment and development firm, in partnership with several other companies. Midway Cos had to finance the project by function, identifying separate partners for the various components of the project, seeing as capital partners were not comfortable with such a large and risky undertaking.

Financing and structuring such large mixed use developments continues to be difficult. Rules hindering financing such projects “had their genesis during the Great Depression or early post war era, and are based on the obsolete assumption that mixed-use developments are financially riskier than single-purpose residential developments.”, according to a 2016 Regional Planning Association report. However, with shifting demographics and market preferences leaning towards connectivity and walkability amongst both young Millennials and Baby Boomers, single-use projects may in fact become riskier than ones with higher shares of non-residential uses.

Although not yet expansive and popular yet, the Small Balance Loan program (SBL) by Freddie Mac, launched in 2014, may be a new and viable financing tool for mall owners hoping to transform their portfolio into mixed-use communities like CityCentre. The multifamily housing financial program is a “welcome liberalization in long-term financing” and is designed to provide fast approval of loans for projects with “40 percent of their income—or 40 percent of their space—related to commercial uses”. Thus far, the loans are easiest to get in densely populated metropolitan areas, however, the SBL program is growing fast and may, in the future, become an even more useful tool for forward-thinking mall owners.

With Promenade in San Fernando Valley, the challenges facing the redevelopment of a failed shopping mall were slightly different. Local community scrutiny has been a real impediment to the project still scheduled to be completed in 2035. Given that the 43-year old mall had become a huge “drag on the surrounding neighborhoods” over time, as it became a blighted site subject to “intense speculation over its future”, community support for such a radical transformation was not instantaneous and took a lot of grappling. Even retail tenants were blaming the owner for “allowing the mall to deteriorate to a mere shadow of its former self”.

In order to maintain the mixed use redevelopment project’s transparency, the developers, Westfield Corp, launched a website to seek local residents’ vision for and needs from the mixed use redevelopment, and also to better inform locals of site plans and the sustainability and economics of the project.

Next, to ensure that the mixed-use development remains viable thru 2035, the developers have also ensured that the design of commercial spaces are on trend with what’s occurring across the industry. With the market understanding that the way employees and businesses work will continue to evolve, approximately 150,000 SF of office space will be designed as creative workspaces that include a mix of indoor/outdoor office spaces, co-working spaces, traditional office suites, gallery spaces, and about 60,000SF will consist of work/live studios.

Indeed, mixed use mall transformations as described above may bring several advantages to the local community. From diversifying housing types for existing and future residents to built-in residential market demand for retailers and reduced car trips between work and amenities, the mixed use mall transformation could act as a catalyst for further reinvestment and development in the area. However, mall owners hoping to transform their properties with other partners need to ensure they’re not “dictating supply rather than responding to demand”. As demonstrated by Promenade 2035, market analysis is crucial early on in the planning process to determine what types and how much residential, office and retail space can be viably supported by the local market.

In addition, design experts in commercial spaces need to be engaged to ensure the mall transformations or new developments can accommodate the types of operators determined by a preceding market analysis.

Community engagement throughout the planning process is also key and although many mall developers today are not known for such outreach work, it is important they begin to take on this responsibility with the help of local non-profits because community needs are often nuanced. Conversations with local stakeholders may not only encourage public buy-in but also bring to light different kinds of needs that may not necessarily come up in strict market analyses, including social service, healthcare, public space needs, and architectural preferences. Sometimes, “communities may not be ready to embrace the densities and design standards required to accomplish successful mixed use neighborhoods”, according to Robert Gibbs a retail planning expert, so the open dialogue between mall owner/ developer and the local community can serve to build an understanding around such concerns and guide any concessions that need to be made.

Although the mall to mixed use trend is becoming popular amongst commercial real estate developers, it certainly is no mean feat. But it is one of the solutions that may help us transform the failed suburban landscape across the country and with stronger partnerships, such projects may be easier to accomplish in many more places. 

Managing Homelessness Downtown

Our recent experience working with downtowns in the state of New York and in North Carolina this past year has brought to our attention a spike in stakeholder concerns over homelessness downtown. The homeless population is often referred to as the people who “lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence". In downtowns, the homeless are often seen occupying public or private places that are not designed to be regular sleeping accommodation including parking lots and garages, storefront stoops, transit stations, vacant buildings/ lots etc. In addition to this group, there are also the homeless who live in substandard buildings that lack sanitation, cooking facilities or heat, who are often disregarded.

Trend

Seeing the rising concern over homelessness in our own projects led us to dig a little deeper into the trends happening elsewhere. As it turns out, homelessness is indeed spiking in cities all across the country, and particularly in downtowns. In San Diego, for example, tent cities have begun proliferating downtown near freeway on-ramps and commercial districts and homeless service centers. On a recent trip to Seattle, WA, I witnessed the same trend occurring under the on-ramp to I-90 by the CenturyLink Field and Chinatown District.

A myriad of factors contribute to the rising homeless population downtown but many leaders are increasingly placing blame on criminal justice reforms, which have downgraded some felonies to misdemeanors and therefore keeping some people out of prison or drug treatment and instead leaving them on the streets.

The more popular reason for the rise in homelessness downtown, however, remains the increasing cost of rents and disappearance of residential hotels. As more people look to live in convenient and vibrant downtowns across the nation, the high demand for downtown apartments and houses is slowly driving prices up for all housing stock. Meanwhile, homeless advocates are also pointing to the significant loss of single-room occupancy units, or SROs, as a key factor in the homelessness crisis. Many SRO units that still remain are unfortunately uninviting and unaffordable.

Why do homeless people gather downtown?

While those who can afford to live in downtowns are moving to these areas for comfort, convenience, and entertainment, homeless individuals on the other hand are coming in droves because downtown is often the best place to seek day service centers, social service centers, and basic amenities such as bathrooms and water fountains.  Downtown is also the place where homeless folks can get a meal, a shower or a shelter bed – resources that often cannot be found elsewhere.

During a stakeholder interview for our work in Middletown (NY), Director of the Thrall Library, Matt Pfisterer informed us that the homeless population there was particularly active around the library because they needed bathroom access in the day when they were not in shelters. Later in the afternoon, he reports, the homeless crowd migrates towards the soup kitchens and other downtown homeless service centers as they start to compete for safe and comfortable night time lodging. The Thrall Library, as do many other libraries across the nation, does its best to accommodate this group by ensuring bathrooms are monitored and maintained constantly throughout the day by staff and personnel to ensure that all library users can continue to use the bathrooms hassle-free.

Issues

Bathroom lines and litter are hardly issues when it comes to dealing with homelessness downtown. Many cities are facing harder problems such as drug use in public, rise in reported theft, and overall, a perceived lack of safety amongst residents and visitors. This overall unwelcoming atmosphere is not only discouraging some from living and investing in downtown, but also discouraging customers from shopping and visiting downtown. In our experience, we have heard from business owners and property owners that homelessness downtown has negatively impacted foot traffic and in turn, sales. In some cases, the homeless population has been driven to spend nights on storefront stoops and use back alleys as latrines, giving store employees additional work in the morning when they return to open and operate businesses.

Lower patronage downtown has even resulted in businesses closing in Portland, OR. A dance studio in downtown Portland, OR experienced dwindling class attendance from out-of-towners who felt scared walking to and from parking lots and dance class in the evenings as a result of the spike in the homeless population there.

Management Solutions

Whether perceived or real, this lack of safety experienced downtown can be managed by downtown organizations. The first step in managing homelessness downtown is counting, keeping track, and being aware of the current situation. After all, you cannot manage what you don’t know.  By keeping count of your homeless population, you will be able to determine the actual size and scope of the issue and at the same time identify hot spots with high concentrations of homeless folks and their peak visiting times during the day.

A common way to count the population is to use the ‘point-in-time’ method. This method requires that the count take place on one day every year across the city or downtown and therefore provides a Point-In-Time snapshot of the homeless population. This can be conducted by public or private sector volunteers including, of course, the downtown organization. This information can then even be registered with the US Department of Housing and Urban Development to become a part of a nationwide database for understanding homelessness across the country and will be required to be considered for federal funding to combat homelessness.

The limitation with this method, however, is that volunteers counting are only limited to what they can see by eye. In essence, they count the number of homeless people seen in cars, and on foot and if there are those who are hidden in tents, an assumption is made that there are two people per tent and may therefore be undercounting. Keeping a consistent counting method throughout the months and years is crucial for comparing data over time accurately and as long as this limitation is recognized, downtown organizations will be able to make informed decisions.

Downtown San Diego Partnership takes counting a step further by organizing a monthly survey instead of an annual one. Homeless outreach workers with the Downtown Partnership cover 275 city blocks between midnight and 5 a.m. on the last Thursday of every month and they have been counting since 2012. This has enabled them to see changes year-on-year and the data has helped the Partnership determine what actions need to be taken to manage the spike in homelessness and also to determine factors that may be affecting the numbers.

Taking Action

There are a number of actions that can be taken by downtowns to manage their homeless populations depending on size and scope.

First, developing a Vulnerability Index has been critical to many downtowns and cities in order for them to identify and prioritize the homeless population on the streets that should qualify for housing. A Vulnerability Index typically measures length of homelessness and mortality risk and is a practical application—a person-to-person survey—that is “revolutionizing the speed at which … chronically homeless population is placed into permanent housing”.

In some cities, non profits are stepping forward to create diverse housing stocks for the formerly homeless and low-income residents. Mixed-income permanent supportive housing is becoming a popular strategy to house the homeless population in larger cities such as DC and NYC.Often these buildings also feature community spaces such as rooftop terraces, gardens, lounges, gyms and laundry rooms that help the residents get out and engage with neighbors – a holistic environment for recovery from homelessness or any other dire situation.

While providing housing stock may be a longer term strategy, other short to medium-term strategies are also in place in many downtowns across the country. Libraries, as mentioned earlier, are becoming top community spaces that support the homeless population. The DC public library, for example, now provides an innovative outreach program for the homeless since its first hire of a Health and Human Services Coordinator. A Knight Foundation grant in 2015 enabled DC Public library to create an online interface of health and human services data  and train librarians in homelessness outreach so that when homeless folks come up to a librarian, he/she is able to direct them to the right service providers and give the correct referrals. This is a simple yet essential tool for supporting homeless folks and getting them back on track.

In other instances, business improvement districts have partnered with existing homeless-serving organizations to carry out supportive programs. In Los Angeles, CA, Downtown Center Business Improvement District  funds homeless outreach teams to contact, interview and assist homeless people living in the west side of downtown. Over $255,000 has been funneled from the BID to two social services agencies in order to hire staff to do this outreach work. PATH, or People Assisting the Homeless, is one of the organizations that provides services, including street outreach, shelter and housing construction. Chrysalis, a skid row program, then provides job preparation and temporary work experience, and also has been tasked with picking up litter in areas heavily-trafficked by homeless folks. In the first year of funding from the BID, outreach workers completed 196 assessments, and placed 36 people in permanent housing and enrolled 56 in PATH’s housing services.

Downtown San Diego Partnership, on the other hand, has set up a Clean and Safe Program and DowntownDC BID partnered with the city government and 20 local service providers in order to facilitate various efforts to end homelessness. This includes a partnership with Pathways to Housing DC that has deployed a 4-person, clinically-based outreach team that provides street-level intervention to move individuals beyond homelessness to independence. In addition, DowntownDC BID’s Safety/ Hospitality and Maintenance employees have 12 specially-trained members, known as the Homeless Outreach Service Team (HOST), who work closely with the Pathways to Housing DC Team and are trained to recognize and engage individuals with mental and addiction challenges. The smallest yet most impactful effort made by DowntownDC BID, however, remains the brown bag discussions that help educate the public on homelessness and raise awareness.

Installing public bathrooms is another potential strategy that might mitigate instances of public urination/ defecation. Although not all instances of this offence is carried out by the homeless, the compassionate approach rather than law enforcement approach has been widely praised by residents of the city of Denver, CO, where a pilot program of mobile public restrooms was established last year. These mobile facilities cost $12,000 per month to lease and are cleaned nightly and rotated regularly to different locations. Public bathrooms are basic amenities that should be made available to all users of downtown.

Given that vacant lots are often targeted for homeless camps to set up, downtown organizations may mitigate the situation by requiring or ensuring that private property owners have reliable property management companies in place to monitor compliance with zoning codes.

Finally, as downtown organizations plan ahead the annual schedule of events, they might start thinking about organizing events in partnership with homeless groups and shelters to accelerate and coordinate the move-in process. These processes normally take 60 days to happen but can be expedited in a single all-day event that serves as both outreach to homeless folks and also one that raises awareness amongst the general public.

Take a Comprehensive Approach

Overall, it is important to acknowledge that ignoring the homeless population downtown will not make it go away. A comprehensive approach must be taken by downtowns, in partnership with city, state or even federal agencies, and nonprofits and local community groups. Addressing the full range of issues faced by the homeless including housing/shelter, employment services, meals, and rehabilitation is crucial to managing the problem. It is also important to remember to count and measure the scale and scope of the issue first before taking any mitigating steps. This ensures that the response or strategies implemented directly serve those in need rather than simply blanket the problem.

Round Up: Community-Run Commercial Space, City Power, Crowdfunding Green Space, NYC Kiosks Makeover, Detroit Small Business Growth

The Quest for Community-Run Commercial Space
England has pubs,  Paris has bookstores, so why can't New York City have state-sanctioned commercial spaces in an era of high commercial vacancy, especially in lower Manhattan, and shuttering of stores that are intricate to the cultural fabric of the city. The Real Estate Investment Cooperative steps in where the city is slow to form a plan.

Cities are powering the rebound in national income growth
For the most part we have recently seen headlines regarding a national income rebound. Much of the economic drive comes from US's thriving city economies.

Greening Urban Space through Crowdfunding
This a quick and simple example of using the power of community to green an urban space. Crowdfunding is not totally new but this short article sheds light on its usefulness to update a small derelict parcel of land for community enjoyment.

Free Wi-Fi Kiosks Were to Aid New Yorkers. An Unsavory Side Has Spurred a Retreat.
A new accessory to the streets of NYC has gone awry. These multifunctional units came to replace the underused or unusable pay telephones on the street but apparently came with too much functionality as people have begun to basically spend hours on end at them. This new NYC streetscape feature had good intentions and will be modified to ensure that those intentions are met for good. How is your district meeting technological needs?

Detroit Small Businesses Get Room to Grow
Grant money is giving Detroit business owners chance to grow. Does your city offer similar funding sources to help the entrepreneurial drive?  Big gains were noted in a follow up article "Entrepreneurship Fund Touts Big Gains for Metro Detroit."

IDA Atlanta: A Few Takeways

We came back from IDA Atlanta inspired with the exciting panels we had the opportunity to attend. For those who missed the conference (and the fun!) here are some key takeaways:

The rise of mid-tier cities – millennials are moving back to mid-tier cities attracted by real estate affordability and quality of life.  Some lessons learned:

•       Yes, millennials are moving back but they want to see positive change if they are to stay. They not only want to see those cities improving, but they want to be part of the change. Cities willing to attract (and especially retain) this population need to provide avenues for active civic engagement (and not just events).
•       Walkability and the availability of multiple transportation options are the main factors attracting residents and businesses downtown.
•       Availability of retail (eating establishments as well as stores) within walking distance of work is an amenity increasingly valued by employees and employers alike. Thus, investing in downtown commercial corridors, making them walkable and vibrant, is a necessary economic development strategy for those cities willing to attract the young skilled labor force (of the not so distant future).

Vibrancy is an economic development engine, but in districts with an active nighttime activity it is fundamental to balance the needs of customers and nearby residents. Some lessons learned:

•       After complaints from residents, Edmonton installed urinals and found that over 500 people used them every night. With that information in hand, local commercial district practitioners were able to successfully advocate for the installation of public restrooms. 
•        Night transportation is a problem.  In many cities public transit stops service before restaurants and bars close, forcing people to rely on automobiles. In many nighttime areas, traffic becomes a problem, with all the taxis, ubers and lyfts parking around to pick up customers. To address this problem, Austin created designated places for taxis and car service companies with strong enforcement.
•       The creation of a local Hospitality Business Association (or Committee) is a first step towards establishing better interactions between businesses and local communities. Having open meetings between the association and community members allows for constant communication and having issues addressed before they become a problem. 
•       A successful example includes the creation of local Community Court programs that allow people who commit low-level misdemeanors to avoid a criminal record if they complete community service and pay a smaller fine. The service typically ranges from clean up to graffiti removal events. The Beach Area Community Court in Pacific Beach has had an acceptance rate of 88% (of offenders accepting to participate in the program) and reports a recidivism rate of less than 5%.

      Civic engagement is no longer an option -  it is a must in creating more authentic and inclusive revitalization initiatives. Some of the main challenges include avoiding narrow interests to hijack the public dialogue, including the voices of the typically missing groups (minorities), and maintaining public trust in the process and the players. Some ideas and tools to address these challenges include:

•       One way to generate meaningful participation includes the Appreciative Inquiry (AI) approach by focusing (and valuing) on what is working in the district, analyzing why it is working and fostering more of it. The basic tenet of AI is that a district(or organization) will grow in whichever directions the people in the district focus their attention.
•      One way to reach people that are typically absent from the discussion is to bring the questions (the process) where they are and at the times that they are there (i.e. engage local students and have them interview their elders; bring the project to a local coffee shop, or the farmers market, and ask only one or two questions to make sure more people participate).

Some interesting engagement tools include:

Liberating Structures is an engagement model that facilitates relational coordination and trust. It consists of microstructures that foster lively participation in groups of any size, making it possible to truly include and unleash everyone. The website has a menu with 34 structures on how groups can organize interactions and work together in multiple ways.  

Neighborland is a platform that allows civic leaders to collaborate with local communities in an accessible and participatory way. It does that by integrating on-site and online community feedback within the project website and allowing for continual feedback and online discussions.

MetroQuest is a community engagement software designed to educate communities and collect informed input in a short period of time. Participants can see the impact of their choices in real time and learn alternatives and tradeoffs based on their own priorities.