The 2017 'Great Places in America'

The American Planning Association's annual list celebrates the best urban planning and design from around the country.

1 minute read

October 4, 2017, 1:00 PM PDT

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


Cincinnati, Ohio

Over-the-Rhine in Cincinnati, Ohio. | aceshot1 / Shutterstock

The American Planning Association has announced its 2017 Great Places in America. The Great Places award acknowledged five winners each in three categories—Great Neighborhoods, Public Spaces, and Great Streets.

Information about each of the 2017 winners is available on the APA's website, and all day long news has been flowing in from news outlets celebrating the acknowledgement of places in their area. Here's a roundup of local news stories covering the awards as of this writing:

Great Neighborhoods

Over-the-Rhine (Cincinnati)
OTR Named One Of 15 Great Places In America
OTR recognized as one of five "Great Neighborhoods'' in America by the American Planning Assn.

Seward (Minneapolis)
Minneapolis neighborhood named one of 2017's 'Great Places in America'
Seward Named Among Greatest Neighborhoods In U.S.

Pearl (San Antonio)
Pearl makes “Great Places in America” list

Uptown Greenwood (Greenwood)
Uptown Greenwood named one of America's great neighborhoods

Public Spaces

The County Home Complex (Pitt County)
Pitt County’s County Home Complex ranks in APA’s top five Great Public Spaces

Market Square (Knoxville)
Market Square named one of 15 Great Places in America by American Planning Association

Great Streets

Lincoln Avenue and Giddings Plaza (Chicago)
Lincoln Square Named A 'Great Place' In America: Well, Duh

South Grand Boulevard (St. Louis)
South Grand designated 'Great Street in America'

Wednesday, October 4, 2017 in American Planning Association

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Get top-rated, practical training

Concrete Brutalism building with slanted walls and light visible through an atrium.

What ‘The Brutalist’ Teaches Us About Modern Cities

How architecture and urban landscapes reflect the trauma and dysfunction of the post-war experience.

February 28, 2025 - Justin Hollander

Complete Street

‘Complete Streets’ Webpage Deleted in Federal Purge

Basic resources and information on building bike lanes and sidewalks, formerly housed on the government’s Complete Streets website, are now gone.

February 27, 2025 - Streetsblog USA

Skating rink under freeway in Bentway park in Toronto, Canada.

Montreal’s Gorilla Park Repurposes Defunct Railway Track

The park is part of a global movement to build public spaces that connect neighbors and work with local elements to serve as key parts of a city’s green infrastructure.

February 24, 2025 - The Globe and Mail

General Store and Post Office in Saint Michael North Dakota on the Spirit Lake Reservation.

Spirit Lake Nation Reclaims 680 Acres After Century-Long Effort

After decades of advocacy, the Spirit Lake Nation successfully reclaimed 680 acres of its original treaty land from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, marking a significant step toward healing and future development.

17 minutes ago - ICT

People walking down Bourbon Street in New Orleans at night.

Bourbon Street Could Be a Model for Pedestrian Spaces

The conversation around pedestrianizing public streets isn’t new — think Times Square. Could one of America’s oldest streets lead the way in a revival of the pedestrian mall?

1 hour ago - Streetsblog USA

Rush hour traffic jam of cars, buses, taxis and trucks on the Williamsburg Bridge in Brooklyn, New York City with the colorful glow of sunlight in the background.

Multiple Lawsuits Aim to Save NYC Congestion Pricing

Environmental and transit advocacy groups, along with the MTA, are suing USDOT over its recent crusade to end the cordon pricing program.

2 hours ago - Sierra Club

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.