On February 6, the ULI Washington Placemaking Initiative Council convened at ULI Headquarters to hear presentations from speakers detailing projects that they are working on in Tysons Corner and Montgomery County, MD.  Stephanie Pankiewicz, a partner at Land Design,  shared a presentation titled “Creating the Path to a New Tysons by Placemaking.” The presentation brought to life the extensive Urban Design and Placemaking work being done at a large mixed-use development called The Boro District.   The Boro is a multi-phase development located adjacent to the Greensboro Metro Station along the new Silver Line.  The project is creating a project that includes residential, retail, entertainment, and office uses.  Extensive streetscaping, pedestrian-friendly design and public green spaces are significant elements of the project.  The Placemaking presentation can be found HERE.

The second presentation moved from the project level to the Community level by discussing the new Energized Public Spaces (EPS) Functional Master Plan and Design Guidelines from the Montgomery County Parks Department.  Cristina Sassaki, Lead Planner for the new Master Plan presented a study by the Department titled “Stronger, Healthier and Happier Communities; Access to Experiences, Not Acres.”  The Plan includes an analysis tool that has been developed to determine how parks can be more accessible to a majority of residents and workers in areas of the County where there is a high density of people and jobs, and in areas planned for growth.  The vision for the EPS areas is that everyone in the geographic location can walk to a public space.  A pilot project is being conducted in the Silver Spring area of the County and the methodology wlll eventually be used for park planning in other areas of the County.  A copy of her presentation can be found HERE.