– Your Bright Brothers Team
David Romako / Josh Yeager /  Brandi Walsh

The pundits and prognosticators are recommending that with a softer return of daytime workforce, downtowns and districts need to lean in on restaurant, retail, F&B and … you guessed it — EXPERIENTIAL! It’s time to put those placemaking chops to work, and Klip Collective is one of our favorite purveyors of projection mapping, sound and light experiences. If you’ve seen “Electric Desert” at Phoenix’s Botanical Gardens, or the “Deck the Hall” holiday light show on Philadelphia’s city hall, you know what Klip Collective is capable of! The New York Times recently featured Klip Collective in a piece pushing museum experiences en plein air, and this is precisely the kind of placemaking that every downtown and district needs to be focusing on right now. Wanna learn more about Illuminated Placemaking? Download our latest Trends Report for more insights and inspo!

Photo credit: Klip.Tv

Money. Of course, everyone loves money, but we mean money for your district to do amazing stuff! There’s $1 trillion in federal infrastructure and jobs funding being doled out, but the process to get them can be, well… like dealing with the government. Insert the Local Infrastructure Hub which helps municipalities navigate the system to obtain funds. Additionally, nonprofits partnered with a local government entity are eligible for creative placemaking grants from $25K – $150K from the National Endowment for the Arts “Our Town” initiative. Initial grant submissions are due by Aug 4, 2022 so you’ve got plenty of time to get your partnerships paired and get those placemaking dollars, folks! Best of luck on any of these undertakings and Happy Placemaking!

Photo credit: Jonne Huotari, Unsplash 

… that climate change, gentrification, autonomous vehicles, and combating air pollution are all part of a new modality of urban planning utilizing “digital twins” of an actual city? Digital twining is nothing new. It’s been used by NASA and the healthcare sector for years; testing theoretical models in advance of putting things into action. Proponents of digital twinning say the due diligence allows them to identify errors in advance, and a supercomputer located inside a deconsecrated church in Barcelona is empowering thoughtful decision making and transparency before putting plans in place. At a recent conference in Dubai, speakers discussed the pressing needs of future cities, and with 70% of the world’s population predicted to live in cities by 2050, thoughtful planning needs to begin now. Executive Director of Future, Foresight and Imagination at the Dubai Future Foundation, Dr. Patrick Noack, is noted as stating, “This includes testing virtual metaverse cities’ design and benefiting from them to experiment with engineer (sic) optimal smart solutions for designing sustainable future cities, especially since different cities need different solutions according to their needs”. Digital twinning could be the key to avoiding human-biased policies and practices, like those clearly documented by one of our favorite organizations of late, Segregation by Design, which just got a shout out from Fast Company. Here’s to a more equitable future!

Photo credit:  Logan Armstrong, Unsplash 

Every downtown and district is now faced with a unique PR challenge. Because most news outlets rely on clicks — headlines and bylines must grab a user’s attention, and alarmist statements do that best. So while your local paper may be prone to publishing articles about the pandemic loss to local business, lack of daytime employees…etc. — it’s a good idea to have updated stats handy and at your avail to counter the negative narratives. Downtown Tempe did a really good job with one of their latest blog posts showcasing some pretty impressive data that takes back control of the conversation, dispels anecdotal sound bytes and drives the narrative with positive positioning. To top it off, they shared a quick stats snapshot in their most recent member newsletter to underscore the wins that stakeholders should be discussing with their friends, family and staff members. Smart move and kudos Downtown Tempe!

Photo credit: Downtown Tempe

From Huntsville, AL to Harrisburg, PA, from Seattle, WA to San Juan, PR — see how your downtown rates and ranks in the U.S. News & World Report’s assessment of the top places to live in the country for 2022/2023. They researched the top 150 metros by population and then ranked them numerically based on several criteria. To make the grade, a place needed to provide good value, be a desirable place to live, have a strong job market and offer a high quality of living. You can review the methodology here, but the proof is in the pudding with the list right here. Did your place pass muster?  If so, let us know!  And big congrats to Huntsville, AL for coming out on top!