Blogs

Margaret Sullivan 

Monday, October 26, 2020

Brookings Institute Blog: Place Making Post Cards

The economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic has exposed both the fragility of our nation’s civic infrastructure, as well how much our communities rely on it. But even as states and localities face crushing budget shortfalls, the public amenities they offer—parks, recreation centers, libraries, etc.—are stepping up to provide communities with essential resources to weather the pandemic and build resilience in the months to come... 

https://www.brookings.edu/blog/the-avenue/2020/10/26/how-a-new-haven-library-is-connecting-residents-to-the-citys-innovation-economy/amp/

There is a huge untapped resource for combating COVID-19, and it is growing just as fast as the pandemic. I encourage nonprofits to create opportunities for people to help the work you do without having to leave their home. To help promote the idea I have created a Website at www.covid19vip.com, which is free for anybody to use or emulate. The "VIP" stands for "Volunteer in Place." Why just shelter in place when you could also volunteer in place (VIP)? Be a COVID-19 VIP!

Late last month,  published a piece with the somewhat incendiary title “How placemaking is tearing apart social housing communities.” The article tells a distressing story of a local east London council forcing the relocation of social housing residents so the estate could be refurbished, and how years later, hundreds of units remain empty as displaced residents have yet been able to return. The details as described are a little murky — or perhaps I just got lost in the British English — but the author, Nye Jones, was crystal clear on one point: placemaking was to blame...

https://www.brookings.edu/blog/the-avenue/2019/01/16/how-placemaking-can-empower-urban-communities-not-tear-them-apart/