CDAD Placemaking Workshop
Community Development Advocates of Detroit
(CDAD)
CDAD is Detroit’s association of community development and
neighborhood improvement organizations. It enhances the
capacity and effectiveness of its members, other communitybased organizations and Detroit residents through advocacy,
training, technical assistance, information sharing, education and
facilitating common action.
Workshop Goals
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Provide an overview of the Placemaking concept and process
Provide an opportunity to talk about Placemaking in Detroit
Share information about CDAD’s Placemaking grant
What is placemaking?
Placemaking: a collaborative process of people coming
together to create the great public spaces at the heart of their
community
-a transformative approach that inspires people to create and
improve their public places
-rooted in community-based participation
-involves the planning, design, management and programming of
public spaces.
(Project for Public Spaces)
The benefits of place
Have attractions
and destinations
MANAGE
THE SPACE
Manage the
experience
Have a
flexible space
Encourage
seasonal uses
The Power of 10
Power of 10 is the idea that any great place itself needs to offer at
least 10 things to do or 10 reasons to be there. These could include a
place to sit, playgrounds to enjoy, art to touch, music to hear, food to
eat, history to experience, and people to meet. Ideally, some of these
activities are unique to that particular spot and are interesting enough to
keep people coming back. The local folks who use the space most
regularly are the best source of ideas for what uses will work best.
(Project for Public Spaces)
The placemaking process
Community Engagement
1. GET MORE
PEOPLE
INVOLVED IN
THE PROCESS
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Use the PM process to increase civic engagement
Find people who can provide historical context
Talk to people who are using the space to see how
they use it currently
Talk to people about why they do not use the space
Ask people about their hopes for the space and the
community
Choosing your space
Traditional methods
of choosing a space
may not be
appropriate in all
of Detroit…
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Choosing a space should be done with the community
Can be a space of historical significance
Should be a space that is important to the community
in some way
Can it contribute to community safety?
Can it be a new space for the community to come
together?
Is it on a walking route to school?
RECLAIMING OUTDOOR SPACE
2. Evaluate the space
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Can people easily walk through the space?
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Are people using the space? Why or why not?
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Are people using the site as groups or individually?
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Is the space easily accessible?
.
3. Plan a vision for the place
The community’s vision for the space:
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To identify the activities that will take
place in the space
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To create a positive image
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To create a comfortable space
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To create a space where people want to
be
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To create a space that will give people a
sense in the area.
THE ALLEY PROJECT-SOUTHWEST DETROIT
.
4. Identify short-term ‘experiments’
-temporary
-provides an opportunity to see how the space functions under different
circumstances
-allows time to try different
-lighter, quicker, cheaper (LQC)
‘start with petunias’
5. DEVELOP
BROADER,
LONGER PLAN
FOR
IMPROVEMENTS
TO THE SPACE
Based on the short-term experiments
Develop a long-term plan
Plan long-term experiments
Consider all the different stakeholders: residents,
municipality, local business…
6. EVALUATION
Evaluation should be on-going and should encourage rethinking and re-planning of any given space. (iterative
process)
Make sure that any evaluation should involve different
stakeholders including users of the space, sponsors and
even city staff and elected officials
Placemaking in Detroit
“You don’t have to move out of your neighborhood to live in a
better one.”
-Majora Carter
Placemaking in Detroit
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Campus Martius
River Walk
Eastern Market
Dequindre Cut
Palmer Park
Osborn Edible Hut
Heidelberg Project
Peaches and Greens
Others?
Palmer Park
Osborn Edible Hut
Campus Martius
CDAD Placemaking Grant
Application deadline March 24, 2015
Community groups are encouraged to apply
The group needs to have 501c3 status or have a fiduciary to sponsor them
One grant per district will be awarded
Each grant is for $7000.00
Residents in each district will get a chance to vote for their favorite project
at a CDAD caucus meeting in April
Eligible Expenses
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Purchase of materials to create a discernable space (seating, tables,
garbage cans, lights, etc.)
Purchase of materials related to programming the space (paint,
blankets, movie equipment, chess boards, table tennis, etc.)
Promotional materials
Permits
Architectural designs/drawings (e.g. blueprint for basketball court)
Ineligible expenses
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Illegal activities
Alcohol
Maintaining existing services (you can build on an existing service but
you can’t maintain at current level)
Projects should/can…
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Address a priority for action identified by the community (e.g. safety,
vacant lots, lack of community gathering space, community pride, etc)
Have wide support from the community/strong community engagement
component
Have an identified community partner that can provide support with
programming
Have a long-term vision for the space
Have a group of people that are willing to work together to maintain and
program the space
Build on an existing placemaking effort
Lighter, Quicker, Cheaper
Timeline
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February 23 – applications open
March 24 – applications close
First week of April, finalists notified
Finalists’ phone conference with PPS for budget review
April 13-25 CDAD caucus meetings, residents in each district can vote
for their favorite project
Winners announced
End of April grantees meet with PPS for site review
May projects begin
What are we looking for?
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Robust community engagement process – show us that you involved the
community in the entire process (from choosing the space to
programming and maintanence)
A clear plan on how to maintain a level of programming and
maintenance (sustainability)
Realistic in terms of timeline and budget
Contributes toward the betterment of the community around it
For more information and to get an application form, please email
Madhavi Reddy
CDAD Strategic Framework Manager
madhavireddy@cdad-online.org
Thank you!