Placemaking Week

For decades, suburbs represented the aspirations of many Americans. But the promise of the suburbs was undermined by entrenched inequity and aggravated by single-use zoning that favored driving and left many communities complacent and placeless. Now, two historic shifts are challenging the suburbs: increasing poverty, and demographic changes that fuel the demand for walkability and new housing forms among millennials and retirees. This session will take a multi-faceted look at how communities are using equity challenges and placemaking as the impetus for suburbs to promote walkable urban places with a particular focus on Washington’s suburbs. Panelists will demonstrate how to address placemaking, housing and transportation choices, and equity in a variety of suburban settings from community-wide initiatives to transform suburban parking lots into neighborhood gathering spaces, to a community shelter with supportive housing in a suburban town center. Attendees will learn about how the building blocks of urban design are critical in creating walkable places that become the heart of their communities; public realms that promote interaction and community; and authenticity that represents living culture and traditions.