Reimagine Runnemede: 2018

Monday, December 31, 2018

Creative Placemaking in Glassboro

Creative Glassboro

Saturday, December 29, 2018

Make the town walkable

Why Walkability matters
How walkable is my location?

Friday, December 28, 2018

From Blight to Beauty in the Motor City

Thursday, December 27, 2018

Kensington Storefront Challenge

Saturday, December 15, 2018

Committee Members "Must Read" List

Building Public Will for the Arts

What Saved Collingswood?

How to Encourage Entrepreneurship

Sunday, December 2, 2018

Meeting Dec 2, 2018 agenda

5 WAYS ARTS PROJECTS CAN IMPROVE STRUGGLING COMMUNITIES

https://www.pps.org/article/artsprojects

"Since 2011, the NEA has awarded more than $30 million to support 389 Our Town projects in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico."

Tonight we are looking at The Our Town Program & Creative Pacemaking

EXPLORING OUR TOWN

How can a pop-up arts project help reclaim a downtown’s empty spaces and create a new identity for the area?

Creative placemaking projects strategically link communities and local governments with artists, designers, and arts organizations to improve quality of life, create a sense of place, and revitalize local economies.

https://www.arts.gov/exploring-our-town/

Mount Rainier, Maryland, a suburb of Washington DC, is home to a creative community drawn to the city by its proximity to the capital and its relatively inexpensive cost of living. However, the downtown area has suffered from a spate of underutilized spaces and vacancies, creating the impression of a city less vibrant than it actually is. To overcome this challenge, a coalition of cultural organizations and artists imagined an initiative that would bring performances to vacant spaces and convert empty storefronts into pop-up galleries, giving artists an opportunity to exhibit their work and residents a greater incentive to explore these areas of town. “Existing small businesses were struggling and there were high barriers for new ones moving in,” said Michelle Darden Lee, Art Lives Here communications partner and Mount Rainier resident.

https://www.arts.gov/exploring-our-town/art-lives-here

HOMEWORK:
Additional resources for review
https://www.mainstreet.org/home
https://www.artplaceamerica.org/
http://columbusndc.org/ncr-program.html
https://www.dvrpc.org/Planning/
https://www.dvrpc.org/Reports/MIT002.pdf

Art Lives Here

Better Block - Mount Rainier

Sunday, March 25, 2018

Runnemede Walkabout

Here are some photos that were taken in March 2018 of buildings in Runnemede

Click here to view the gallery

Arts committee visits Philly Mural Arts

It was an upbeat day, as we headed into the city to meet with a community-based group for Mural Arts-Philadelphia. We were on a mission to discover how this program works, including tips on funding, organizing, and "people-powering." The welcome was warm as we entered a room alive with activity. We joined the volunteers who were painting on parachute cloth, which had been cut in sections and coded by the color of paint. The sections were destined to become a unified, huge mural on the side of a building.

The Mural Arts program was started in 1984 as an anti-graffiti and restorative effort to adorn Philadelphia buildings with public art. It has effectively transformed the negative energy associated with graffiti into a positive energy that fuels an art form which has become a unique part of Philadelphia's identity.

We think that a mural, strategically placed, could greet people entering Runnemede, for art is a universal language and communicates visually. Consider how such a mural could involve our community, instill pride, and attract newcomers to our borough!