TACTICAL URBANISM NEAR NORTHSIDE AWARDS

The great coalition by different partners (City of Houston Complete Communities, Private Developers, Local Survey Companies, Avenue CDC, Trabajadoras del Hogar Sin Fronteras) and funding from private individuals coordinated by CGEA Planning+Design, is happy to announce the APA Houston Section has awarded: 

Grassroots Award 2024

Silver: Urban Design Market Near Northside (Better Block Project)

The Urban Design Market supported Artist Mariana Keymolen in improving (with a mural) an abandoned site in the Near Northside Community. The site was experiencing homeless camps & private property violations. 

Simultaneously, a small farmers market providing drinks, city booth, food and other vendors activated the abandoned site while promoting economic development. To bring in people to the site, a tactical urbanism crosswalk connected the METRO light rail station to the site. 

This created a perfect experiment to show the city and local government officials what art, urban design, community & economic development do to create safer communities.