Inner Belt Brickbottom Plan - Somerville, Massachusetts
PlaceMatters is working in partnership with Goody Clancy and the City of Somerville Office of Strategic Planning and Community Development to develop a community vision for Somerville’s Inner Belt Brickbottom neighborhood. Currently an isolated industrial zone, Inner Belt Brickbottom will become more accessible with the opening of the MBTA Green Line’s Washington Street Station later this decade. The area is considered a strong candidate for Transit-Oriented Development (TOD).
New River Valley Livability Initiative - New River Valley, Virginia
PlaceMatters will be working for the next two years with the New River Valley Planning District Commission (NRVPDC) and a consortium of local partners to develop public engagement strategies for the New River Valley Livability Initiative, a HUD Sustainable Communities Regional Planning grant recipient. The New River Valley (NRV)—an agricultural region of Southwest Virginia that is home to Virginia Tech and Radford University—is one of a handful of small metropolitan areas working to create strategic plans that meets the needs of more rural regions.
Fort Lauderdale Vision Action Plan - Fort Lauderdale, Florida
PlaceMatters is partnering with Wallace, Roberts, and Todd to help the City of Fort Lauderdale create a Vision Action Plan. This plan will build upon existing plans to create a comprehensive vision that reflects the hopes and views of all residents. PlaceMatters will focus on engaging the public, including typically underrepresented populations, via a series of public workshops and multi-media input methods.
Hamakua Community Development Plan - Hamakua Coast, Hawai'i
PlaceMatters is working with a interdisciplinary team led by PBR Hawaii to create the Hamakua Community Development Plan. The team is working with the County of Hawai'i Planning Department to help residents envision a sustainable future for the Hamakua region on the Eastern side of the island. Residents of the Hamakua region have already begun to articulate their vision via "Talk Story" meetings and focus groups.
City of Omaha Comprehensive Energy Management Plan - Omaha, Nebraska
PlaceMatters is partnering with the Brendle Group and Clarion Associates to develop the City of Omaha's Comprehensive Energy Management Plan. The Plan will provide the City with baseline data on various energy and emissions metrics, goals and metrics for reducing energy use and emissions from various sources, and clear implementation steps.
DeSoto - New Era of Discovery Stewardship Plan - DeSoto County, Mississippi
DeSoto County is Mississippi's fastest-growing county, a rapidly-suburbanizing area just south of Memphis. It lies directly along the planned I-69/I-269 international transportation corridor, which is being built across 8 US states to provide a missing link in the North American highway network. With 11 potential interchanges planned along a very rural corridor, DeSoto wants to get planning right, taking the opportunity to direct rapid growth into building intentional communities, instead of the haphazard strip commercial or industrial districts often found along such corridors.
Planning for Transit Supportive Development
Contracted by the New Jersey Institute of Technology through an FTA grant, PlaceMatters has been tasked with building the online component of a larger research project around best cases in Transity Supportive Development. The site is currently not live, but is being developed on the Drupal platform to make updating and managing content easier.
Albany 2030 Comprehensive Plan - Albany, New York
PlaceMatters is partnering with Wallace, Roberts, and Todd to create Albany’s first Comprehensive Plan. We are providing the public engagement and decision-support for a comprehensive plan that will reflect the entire community’s vision.
Bridging the Divide
In the aftermath of events such as Hurricane Katrina and Rita, and facing the looming threat of global climate change, PlaceMatters and David and Lucile Packard Foundation identified a critical need to effectively integrate ecosystem science and community planning in ways the public and decision-makers can readily understand and act on.
