Creative placemaking brings art, culture, and engineering together to create culturally diverse and attractive real estate that serves and transforms the communities in which it is built. The use of these characteristics helps bring a project to the next level — one that is more than just a building or a structure. Instead, it’s a part of a healthy, thriving, and attractive community.
In order to help you with your creative placemaking efforts, we’ve identified 10 best practices, rounded up from research.
- Begin with the end in mind.
You must be looking ahead — way beyond achieving your goals and getting the site in place. More than envisioning artistic buildings, make sure to take into account the community’s problems and issues that can arise. Having the possible scenarios in mind can help you address problems early on. Remember that when it comes to creative placemaking, there are no limits!
2. Involve artists and the community.
The most important part of creative placemaking is getting in touch with the people. The artists and the community together serve as the backbone of the entire project. Make sure it meets the needs of the community.
3. Utilize local art and cultural assets.
Creative placemaking is all about art and culture. Make sure you leverage and utilize the assets in the community itself, such as its culture, history, and aspirations. Radical listening is an important and beneficial skill in a feat like this.
4. Engage local artists.
Integrating arts and culture in a project requires an understanding and acceptance that you need the input and collaboration of local artists and creative leaders in the community. Engage local artists to lend a hand and contribute their creativity into your project.
5. Sell the benefits of the project to investors and stakeholders.
This fresh and innovative approach may be difficult to sell to investors and stakeholders — simply because it veers so much away from the traditional means. However, you can help them understand and articulate its benefits by focusing on community-driven outcomes and preparing the hard facts that discuss the benefits in various points of view.
6. Form cross-sector partnerships.
Collaborate with the community and its artists. Remember that they know best, considering that they are the ones living and experiencing the community first-hand. Include artists, community members, foundations, organizations, and the local government in every phase of the project.
7. Identify the skills needed for the project.
Know what skills are needed to help pave the way to your goals. Having access to and engaging the critical skills will help your project succeed.
8. Leverage early wins.
Every milestone in your project deserves a celebration. Keep the community, your stakeholders, and other partners engaged with pop-up events, installations, community gatherings, etc.
9. Innovate.
The effort doesn’t end when the building or structure is built. Creative placemaking is an ongoing project that requires improvement and innovation to keep the community engaged and to ensure that you are meeting their needs.
10. Pursue creative financing.
Financing for your project can come from anywhere. To help you attain the right financing for your creative venture, make sure you have clarity on your vision and that they are conceived for the right reasons.
Creative placemaking not only creates lively and attractive projects. But it helps enhance, uplift, and empower communities. It leverages arts and culture to create a thriving community — and this should be at the center of all your efforts.
