Placemaking Newsletter - August 2018

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Placemaking Newsletter - August 2018

Placemaking Indiana’s monthly newsletter celebrates placemaking happening locally and nationally. We share placemaking trends and opportunities to inspire and support the work you do in your communities.

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Improving Life Through Placemaking

The IndyStar’s Tim Swarens offers six crazy ideas to improve life in Indianapolis through placemaking. What are your crazy ideas to improve life in Indiana? 

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Lighter, Quicker, Cheaper

Indiana towns attract visitors by hosting seasonal events in their communities. These crowd-drawing events are a great opportunity for communities to test out “Lighter, Quicker, Cheaper” placemaking projects. Check out these suggestions from the Project for Public Spaces to prepare for events and festivals this fall.

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The Parklands of Jasper

Jasper, IN recently dedicated a new park deemed The Parklands of Jasper.” This $7.5 million, 75 acre park will be a destination for rural Indiana as it truly encompasses Project for Public Spaces’ Power of 10+.  

Funding Opportunities

  • Applications for the youth community development program My Community, My Vision are due to IHCDA on September 10.
  • Install dynamic and fun public spaces with IHCDA’s CreatINg Places program.
  • The Surdna Foundation funds projects focused on strong local economies, sustainable environments, and thriving cultures. 
  • The Indiana DNR Division of Forestry’s Community and Urban Forestry Assistance grants are due September 28th. The funding is to inventory, plan, evaluate, educate, and plant trees.
  • INDOT’s Community Crossings Matching Grant for shovel ready local construction projects is due on September 28th. 
  • The Indiana Office of Tourism Development offers grants to local governments and non-profits for tourism promotion and development. Call for applications begins in September and applications are due December 3, 2018.
  • The Walmart Foundation provides grants for community development projects to benefit low income populations. Application due December 31, 2018.  
  • Kaboom offers playground grants to help communities build safe places for kids to play.

    Webinars and Conferences

    • The 2018 Indiana Bike & Walk Summit is August 29 and 30 in downtown Indianapolis.
    • The Indiana Arts Commission is hosting the Indiana Arts Homecoming conference on October 18 – 19 in Fort Wayne.
    • These past webinars from the National Association of Realtors focus on affordable housing opportunities and programs. 
    • The Walk Bike Places conference to promote greater access to walking and bicycling for cohesive and vibrant communities will be held in New Orleans on September 16-19.
    • The Project for Public Spaces offers a variety of conferences and events on placemaking.
    • Community Builders offers webinars on community development and placemaking.

    Resources and Guides on Placemaking

    • Placemaking improves places by focusing on the place and its people. 
    • Indiana Landmarks is a statewide non-profit organization that helps save and revitalize historic places. They offer resources and statewide events focused on preservation and place.
    • The terms gentrification and displacement are often used interchangeably. Two short videos explain gentrification and displacement. 
    • City Lab’s University series offers a lesson in inclusionary zoning.

    Case Studies

    • Route 66 is a case study for repurposing historic highways as bike routes in rural America. 
    • The Dutch show how to create bicycling infrastructure to transform a city and maybe a whole country. 
    • The creation of small green spaces can help improve mental health in neighborhoods.

    Placemaking in the News

    Jobs

            Carmen Lethig

            Contact me with ideas, comments, or questions:

            Carmen Lethig, IHCDA Placemaking Manager at clethig@ihcda.in.gov or 317.234.6290. If your agency has a new staff member who wishes to receive this newsletter, please e-mail communications@ihcda.in.gov