We are delighted to announce that in partnership with the Office of Public Art (OPA), our very first Placemaking Academy session kicked-off on August 10th at the offices of Program to Aid Citizen Enterprise (PACE)! A big thank-you to PACE for your generous supportand kind hospitality!

Our Placemaking Academy is part workshop, part design studio and part training session–designed to create a platform to instruct artists and community-based organizations in the process of implementing temporary public art and placemaking projects. Through various participation and instruction methods, participants will learn how to analyze project sites, become more aware of best practices for creative placemaking, evaluation methods, community engagement and facilitation.

The first installment of the Placemaking Academy was facilitated by Sallyann Kluz of OPA where we discussed how placemaking is a recognized movement and how it applies to the specifics of this program. We also explored what placemaking means for each participant and what constitutes success for their respective neighborhoods. The session was culminated with a downtown public art walking tour led by Renee Piechocki of the OPA.

The Placemaking Academy is a major component of our Temporary Public Art and Placemaking pilot program which is designed for Community-Based-Organizations (CBOs) within our targeted neighborhoods to be paired with professional artists to create temporary works of art to do one or more of the following:

• animate public and private spaces
• rejuvenate structures and streetscapes
• support local businesses and enhance public safety

Through this initiative, we seek to bring people of all ages, ethnicities and socioeconomic backgrounds together to build relationships and develop a shared commitment towards transforming a space through sincere collaboration. During the pilot phase, the Placemaking Academy is currently only open to the selected CBO and artist teams but we fully intend for it to be expanded to include a wider audience in the very near future.

The first year of the Placemaking Academy, will consist of up to 10 more sessions where we will take a deeper dive into subject matters such as: community engagement, equity in placemaking, conceptual designs, project implementation, navigating through municipal permitting processes and much more.

For more information on the Placemaking Academy, contact shad@neighborhoodallies.com. Please stay tuned as our temporary art and placemaking projects progress!