• Fighting loneliness with parks and third places

    We have a unique opportunity to rethink what it means to create shared spaces. By reimagining downtowns, expanding parks, and supporting hybrid third places, we can design environments that heal, connect, and inspire.
    I was struck by a recent essay in Time about the growing epidemic of loneliness in America. It drew a clear correlation between isolation and the decline of real-life social connections, particularly in third places—those informal gathering spaces like coffee shops, libraries, and parks. As someone...Read more

  • Tsunami of church closings poses crisis and opportunity

    Governments, business groups, community development corporations, foundations, and designers need to recognize church closures for the urban planning and development crisis they are.
    Note: Public Square has reported on the trend of underutilized and vacant historic church sites and creative new urban design responses . Richard Reinhard, who previously served as chief of staff to the mayor of Buffalo, wrote this piece in The Buffalo News following the Catholic Diocese of Buffalo...Read more

  • Transforming LA’s sprawl: a community call to action

    Communities must support the policies and lead the discussion of solutions for transforming LA’s sprawl for high-level ideas to become a successful reality.
    Home to 3.9 million people , the city of Los Angeles is often thought of as a car-centric, sprawling city. In an effort to transform the way Angelenos travel through the city, many initiatives and plans have been set in motion, from former L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti’s “ Twenty-Eight for ‘28 ” to LA...Read more

  • Honoring neighborhood history, building a garden

    Winthrop Family Historical Garden redesigns an underutilized green space as a beautiful garden and public gathering spot in Chicago, Illinois. MKSK won a 2024 CNU Charter Award in the Block, Street, and Building category.
    In a walkable, growing neighborhood in the Northside of Chicago, a community garden tells an important historical narrative while providing a multi-use gathering space. Due to restrictive covenants, the 4600 block of Winthrop Avenue was the only area of the Uptown neighborhood where Black residents...Read more