Seven sure steps to reactivate your neighborhood

A vibrant public realm leads to successful businesses and additional economic opportunity. Here's seven sure fire ways to reactivate your community without breaking the piggy bank.

<h1>4. Plan Smaller, Not Larger</h1> An outdoor food hall occupying a formerly vacant plot of land in Miami’s Wynwood Arts District.

For decades, most American cities have heavily invested in the revitalization of their urban cores. Many schemes have promoted the idea of investing in a large and expensive one-trick pony as a means to turn their fortunes around. From Rouse’s festival marketplaces of the 1980s to aquariums during the 1990s and later convention centers in the early 2000s, hundreds of millions have been spent on single uses that have not spurred corresponding development in many cases.

On the other hand, the idea of implementing low cost, temporary changes to improve spaces (Tactical Urbanism) has led to affordable, achievable and positive change in many communities. While every project or redevelopment scheme should be evaluated on its own merits, publicly subsidizing large projects isn’t the only or most always effective method for change. In many cases, great results can be achieved through the reimaging of existing underutilized spaces.