Public Space

Following trends seen in Europe and China, a public park in New York City has installed a ping pong table.

March 25, 2011 - DNAInfo

The City of San Francisco is expanding its program of "parklets" -- small public patio-like spaces built on parking spots.

March 25, 2011 - The San Francisco Examiner

Traffic plans for a new casino in downtown Cleveland could create a major improvement for the neighborhood -- or an indelible sore spot.

March 23, 2011 - The Cleveland Plain Dealer

A Cairo native who had returned home before the recent unrest and revolution looks at the role of the city's Tahrir Square, and how recent events have given additional meaning to this public space.

March 1, 2011 - Places

Miyashita Park in Tokyo is an historic site with a history of homeless encampments. Officials plan to turn the park into a skateboard park, with naming rights purchased by Nike.

February 20, 2011 - Positive Spaces

Governor's Island is likely the next major waterfront area in New York City to be converted into a public space. Designers and planners are starting to think about what form it could and should take.

February 9, 2011 - Places

The Dutch Water Line is a floodable defense system built in the 16th Century in the Netherlands. Hundreds of bunkers were built during World War II, but now sit unused. A design firm has constructed a walkway right through the middle of one.

February 3, 2011 - Icon

An art gallery in New York City currently has an installation called Park Here, which is an indoor parkspace made up of fake grass, trees and sunlight.

January 17, 2011 - The New York Times

Grist's Sarah Goodyear talks with New York City Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan about her work in the city -- and what other cities can learn from it.

December 23, 2010 - Grist

Esquire profiles New York City Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan, highlighting her impact on the city's public spaces.

November 26, 2010 - Esquire

A proposal for a "High Line"-like park in Jersey City has some locals deeply concerned about the project's large price tag.

November 12, 2010 - The New York Times

The relocation of a museum in San Francisco offers a model for how private developments can create quality public space, writes John King.

October 20, 2010 - San Francisco Chronicle

A group in Detroit has begun an effort to sell of one-inch parcels of land in the city for $1.

October 13, 2010 - Boing Boing

Despite the quality of temporary public spaces being created in San Francisco, their use of funding sources and lack of permanence could hurt efforts to build permanent public spaces, according to this piece from the San Francisco Chronicle.

September 28, 2010 - San Francisco Chronicle

Seattle is panning to tear down an aging viaduct that runs along its waterfront and replace it with a tunnel beneath downtown. When the viaduct falls, the city is looking to increase public space on a new waterfront.

September 28, 2010 - The Seattle Post-Intelligencer

The city of Indianapolis is using its hosting duties for the 2012 Super Bowl to rework one of its main streets into a new public space.

September 21, 2010 - The Architect's Newspaper

This episode of The Diane Rehm Show explores efforts underway to make the world's cities more livable.

September 17, 2010 - The Diane Rehm Show

Alex Bozikovic hits the beach with his son at a new public space in Toronto: Sugar Beach, an urban park built on a former industrial site.

September 8, 2010 - No Mean City

In Portland, patterns of urban use are emerging that are similar to the European-style neighborhood bar as a community gathering place.

August 30, 2010 - EnzymePDX.com

The Miami City Commission has controversially approved a pair of 50-story electronic signs to be built atop a parking garage next to the City's Arsht Performing Arts Center.

July 30, 2010 - Miami Herald