2010 livability challenge - indianapolis final report

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The Livability ChallengeOctober 11-13, 2010


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The US Initiative is brought to you by

WITH GENEROUS SUPPORT FROM THE ROCKEFELLER FOUNDATION

Beauty is a challenge. When it comes to our cities, we rarely speak

of beauty. Our urban aspirations tend to be framed in more quotidian

language efciency, safety, function, economy. But beauty silently

drives our decisions. Where will we go for lunch? Is there time to stop at

the park? Have you see that performance? Where should we live? And in

driving those decisions it enriches our lives.

Cities that are attentive to beauty understand that

it is an economic engine an engine that attracts

and retains talent and an engine that stabilizes and

raises property values. Cities that are committed

to beauty understand that it enriches and ennobles

its citizens.

The citizens of Indianapolis have made a

tremendous commitment to beauty. Theyve built

a world class Cultural Trail, invested in one of the

premier public art collections (at the airport),

and nine thousand of them volunteered to turn

an interstate highway into a thriving arts and

nature corridor. When the citizens of Indianapolis

encounter the beautiful in good design, in art

and in nature they are not encountering isolated

moments or objects, they are encountering the

product of their concerted eorts and committed

choices.

But for Indianapolis (or for any city in America) to

be a model of a beautiful, twenty-rst century city

it will have to go further. It will have to redene

public art, it will have to reimagine the role of

public infrastructure and it will have to reconnect

to the land. These are some of the Big Ideas that

were identied at the Livability Challenge in

Indianapolis in October 2010. Together the Big

Ideas identied in Indianapolis show what it will

take for any city in America to make beauty, in the

form of art, good design and nature, available to all

of its citizens every day.

What was striking in Indianapolis was how simple

those Big Ideas seemed once they were voiced. But

simple ideas, even inevitable ideas, are not easy to

make true. It was not until those Big Ideas were

rooted in projects in Indianapolis that they began

to demonstrate what a beautiful, livable city would

be. A city where investments in infrastructure

clean the air and uplift the spirit, a city where

artists and designers solve problems, a city that is

at once a park and an economic powerhouse.

We wouldnt have caught a glimpse of that city

without the willingness of the Indianapolis team

to hear new ideas or without the ability of the

national guests to recognize what was happening

in Indianapolis. But now that we have caught a

glimpse we know where we could go.

Charlie Cannon

November 2010





FOREWARDby Brian Payne

I believe if you put a bunch of smart and creative people

with dierent experiences, backgrounds and voices in

a room and give them a common purpose and a great

facilitator, magic should happen. Even with all of this

optimism going in, I was a bit stunned about how great

the Livability Challenge was and what we accomplished

for Indianapolis and, I believe, for cities throughout the

United States.

For me personally, and for the Central Indiana Community

Foundation, the organization in which I serve as President,

there were two major objectives. We wanted to bring local

experts together with national thought leaders to set an

agenda for whats next in Indianapolis that will create

access to art, beauty and nature every day; and to spread

the word nationally that Indianapolis is a progressive,

innovative city with a quality of life that can attract and

retain highly educated, creative and community-minded

people throughout the country and throughout the world.

My colleagues and I believe we now have a creative and

powerful agenda for whats next in Indianapolis. We

also have compelling action plans to move forward on a

number of our big ideas. Since the Livability Challenge

involved and connected so many of our citys leaders,

there is signicant buzz about what transpired. The big

ideas that we proposed already have momentum and

compellingly build on our current assets. In fact, our

Mayor, Greg Ballard, is on board and wants to help create

implementation teams for each of our ten big ideas.

We also accomplished our objective of spreading the work

about our dynamic downtown and amazing quality of

life that Indianapolis already has created. The nationa

experts and community leaders from other cities were

incredibly impressed by our Monument Circle area, the

Indianapolis Cultural Trail, the art and nature park at theIndianapolis Museum of Art and the quantity and quality

of our civic leadership.

Trying to nd the balance between serving Indianapolis

needs and creating a national framework for livability

was an important and a complex challenge. I didnt fully

understand how we would do that until the challenge got

under way. Our facilitator, Charlie Cannon, did a brilliant

job of leading us to build a foundation for both loca

projects and national themes and then helped us connect

the two. This national framework of 21st Century urban

livability priorities will act as an important buttress for

ambitious local projects for cities throughout the U.S

This framework is both a huge gift to Indianapolis and a

signicant national contribution from the work pioneered

in Indianapolis.

Brian Payne is president of the Central Indiana Community

Foundation and co-chair and co-sponsor of the Livability

Challenge.





Inspiring places are magnets for people. Cities

are increasingly being judged by their quality of

place, as Americans choose the places they want

to live based, in part, on their physical appeal and

their vibrancy.

Although it has not always been easy to measure

the impact of such amenities as parks, art and

rst-rate architecture and public places, it is

increasingly clear that investments in these things

have powerful positive eects on cities and their

citizens.

In addition to providing places of respite and

recreation, green space has positive, measurable

impacts on adjacent property values. The sales

premium on property within 100 feet of a park of

any size is 24 percent. Green space also enhances

storm water management and keeps cities cooler.

Imagine a community taking up the challenge to make art, good

design and nature available to every citizen every day. What

would full engagement look like? What would be an effective quick start

strategy? Where are the early wins to create momentum? And how would

a community know when it is succeeding?

When arts are ever-present, they encourage

participation, which leads to a ywheel of other

positive spin-os, including more creative people

who then attract more creative people, making

places more interesting and diverse. And the best

architecture and design creates places that people

love, want to live in, visit and come back to.

Investing in beauty, nature and art are among

the most signicant demonstrations a city can

make about its distinctiveness the unique and

often intangible characteristics of a place that

build attachment among a citys residents. And

communities with the greatest levels of attachment

experience higher economic growth.

Were constrained only by your imagination.

Let it all happen.

Mayor Gregory A. Ballard

City of Indianapolis





B I G I D E A S are needed for any city to achieve the ambition of makingbeauty, in the form of art, good design and nature, available to all of its citizens every

day. The goal of the Livability Challenge was to generate those Big Ideas using a set of

guiding principles, tactics and demonstration projects that provide an actionable and

compelling framework for achieving the Livability ambition.

We began this critical conversation in Indianapolis,

home of the spectacular Indianapolis Cultural Trail.

Together with the Central Indiana Community

Foundation and Indianapolis Downtown Inc, CEOs

for Cities convened national experts and local leaders

to generate big ideas for how cities can provide ever-

present access to art, good design and nature.

Working with a team of national experts led by Will

Rogers, president of the Trust for Public Land, and Bri-an Payne, president of the Central Indiana Community

Foundation, CEOs for Cities worked over 2.5 days to de-

termine what it takes to instill beauty and inspiration

into the daily lives of the citizens of Indianapolis.

The Livability Challenge team included:

National Experts

Will Rogers, President, The Trust for Public Land

Adrian Benepe, Commissioner, NYC Department of

Parks & Recreation

Don Carter, Director, Remaking Cities Institute,Carnegie Mellon University

Deborah Marton, Executive Director, Design Trust for

Public Space

David Rubin, Partner, OLIN

Lily Yeh, Principal, Barefoot Artists

Local Action Team

Brian Payne, President, Central Indiana Community

Foundation, The Indianapolis Foundation

Maxwell Anderson, Director and CEO, Indianapolis

Museum of Art

Alpha Blackburn, President and CEO, Blackburn

Architects, Inc.

David E. Forsell, President, Keep Indianapolis

Beautiful, Inc.

Stuart Lowry, Director, Indy Parks and Recreation

Tamara Zahn, President, Indianapolis Downtown, Inc.

Using a methodology developed by Charlie Cannon

Associate Professor and Founder of the Innovation

Studio at the Rhode Island School of Design, the

team identied critical components of the Livability

ambition:

We can have access to beauty, in the form of art, good

design and nature, every day.

The Big Ideas may be thought of as dierent lensesfor understanding how to achieve the ambition

through which specic projects identied by our key

stakeholders can be viewed. In eect, these projects are

expressions of the Big Ideas. So while Indianapolis was

the laboratory for exploring Big Ideas, the strategies

identied in this report are both locally relevant and

nationally signicant.

The Livability Challenge is one of four national

challenges staged by CEOs for Cities as part of the

US Initiative, an ambitious movement by CEOs for

Cities national network of civic leaders, inuentialpartners and brave new thinkers to dene a new

American Dream. The project articulates a Declaration

of Interdependence with values that dene cities of

tomorrow, today.

The following pages reveal twelve Big Ideas that

emerged from the Livability Challenge, as well as

specic strategies for executing them locally.

Results of the Livability Challenge will be put to use

in national publications related to the US Initiative

including a book to be published by The Rockefeller

Foundation.





1. CELEBRATE CITY CENTERSAt the heart of every city lies an iconic public space

whose meaningful, historic legacy make it a natural

center for vibrancy and economic activity. In

Indianapolis, that space is Monument Circle. Pictured

above, Monument Circle has all of the potential of a great

public piazza, but that potential hasnt been exploited.

Currently, it is just a unique public space that oers nocompelling reason to spend time there. One principal

of the Livability Challenge was to take what you have

and make it better. Examples of this include Chicagos

Millennium Park and New York Citys Highline. These

existing landscapes create opportunity and investment,

as well as destinations for residents and attractions for

new visitors.

ACTIVATE OBVIOUS PUBLIC GATHERING SPACESThe public realm is the least expensive of all the things

to change, and is the most impactful. It is the thing that

will change everyones life. With simple mobile andtemporary interventions, Indianapolis could activate

Monument Circle with a little bit of chaos and inspire

opportunities to put people in touch with one another.

Creating a dynamic culture of possibility need not

require a huge economic investment, even as longer-

term investments are being made. Its a matter of

rening whats there.

IMPLEMENT TRAFFIC CALMINGWith its grand steps and fountain, Monument Circle is

already a great people magnet. But with cars whipping

around the corner it doesnt feel like a true pedestrian

plaza. Experimenting with trac calming, or even

closing to trac at certain times or altogether, the Circle

will take on the energy of a true pedestrian space like afarmers market. The closing of Times Square to trac

resulted in a 71 percent increase to area retail sales along

42nd Street in Manhattan within the rst six months

Design for people, not cars, and retail development will

follow.

RAISE A PROJECTS PROFILE THROUGH DESIGNInspired by a similar competition for Grand Army Plaza

in Brooklyns Prospect Park, Indianapolis Downtown

Inc. has committed to launching an international design

ideas competition to re-imagine Monument Circle

This serves to raise the projects prole both locallyand internationally while also calling upon a broader

network of designers for world-class ideas to exploit the

Circles potential.





2. REVITALIZE THE EDGEAcross the country, low-slung strip malls are suering. These

developments can and should be reimagined to express their hidden

vitality and potential. Revitalizing the edge means acknowledging

that these areaswhich abound in cities throughout the country

can become the foundation for transformation that supports more

viable public spaces and private uses as well as mixed-use zoning.

LOOK FOR SIGNS OF LIFEIn Indianapolis, the W. 38th Street corridor, or Lafayette Square, is one

such area (pictured right). Yet, the corridor is a burgeoning cultural

district and home to an array of ethnic restaurants. Grassroots and

philanthropic eorts are building on these assets in several ways. An

abandoned Goodyear Tire store is being redeveloped into a service

center for art and culture by Big Car Gallery, a local business working

with private funders. Considered an early win for the neighborhood,

this center will support art, storytelling, urban gardens, a small

library and serve as a multi-modal transit hub. Volunteer resources

have been mobilized for community-wide clean up, mural painting,

and tree planting. Grassroots and philanthropic eorts have raisedthe areas prole for ocial resources. The City of Indianapolis

will apply for tax increment nancing, and the Lafayette Square

Area Coalition was formed and, with funding support, hired its rst

executive director.

ANIMATE THE SPACE, EVEN IF TEMPORARILYTalk to people in the community to suggest what kind of public space

will bring people together. Short-term interventions might include

festivals or place-based events like a gallery hop and restaurant tour,

a Gray to Green food festival, food pop art parks or even a local

music festival. These types of public space potluck events inspirepeople about what a place could become and, in the long-run, lead to

the establishment of a new cultural district.

TREAT IT LIKE A BLANK CANVASDead strip malls, in many ways, are a blank canvas. The National

Endowment for the Arts has supported a Dead Malls Competition

to inspire creative re-use of such spaces. On a smaller scale, one

participant suggested the literal canvases oered by billboards

that dot the landscapes of many low-density areas. Creating an

opportunity for local artists to re-purpose them creates a small, but

tangible inspiration.





The inspiration for this Big Idea came from successful

nancial models for public art in Denver and Phoenix,

where aesthetic principles were applied to otherwise

mundane public works projects like concrete silos and

sound walls. Infrastructure investments are necessary

but they need not be ugly. This Big Idea asks cities to

think about how art and materials can be incorporated

into infrastructure projects.

Artists have a role to play in civic solutions and

the creative confrontation of urban problems

Contemporary public art practices can contribute

to delight and serendipitious interactions in the

urban environment as well as bring people together

deliberately for public dialogue. At the US Initiative

San Jose Brain Trust in September 2010, one idea wasto create an Artist-in-Residence program at City Hall.

To encounter art everyday, it must live in all parts of the

city not just downtown or in cultural institutions. One

mechanism to distribute art is to provide pocket or pop-

up parlors in neighborhoods. Make small public spaces

available for installations, murals or performances. In

New York City, for example, the Parks Department hasmade small venues available throughout the city for

curated exhibitions. Other inspiring examples include:

Pianos in San Jose, Bryant Park (NYC), Storefront for

Art & Architecture (NYC), Village of Art and Humanity

in Philadelphia and San Franciscos Local Arts/Gallery

Program.

To accomplish the ambition, cities must makefundamental nancial and cultural commitments. In

Indianapolis, the local team requested that one percent

of the $400 million the city will receive for the sale of

its water infrastructure be applied to the art, design

and implementation of new infrastructure, and that

the entire $400 million be applied to important, visible

civil infrastructure projects.

3. ART IN EVERYNEIGHBORHOOD

4. 1% FOR ART,100% FOR BEAUTY

5. EXPAND THEDEFINITION OF PUBLICART





6. RECONNECT TO THE RIVER

7. UNPAVE PARADISE WITHGREEN INFRASTRUCTURE

Thirty years ago no one could imagine the Bronx River to be anything other than

the open sewer that it was, yet today it is, in many parts, a peaceful corridor that you

can use for canoeing shing, strolling, biking and nature study.

- Adrian Benepe, NYC Parks Commissioner

Most American cities were sited in proximity to rivers, lakes and

other features that supplied their economic base. Today, riverfronts

once treated as industrial ports of harbor are being reclaimed forrecreation and even residential uses, creating new economic value

that fosters social connections and reaps environmental benets.

The Indianapolis Museum of Art won a Mayors Institute on

City Design 25th Anniversary grant for its series of site-specic

installations along the White River called FLOW (Can You See the

River?). The project was designed to reveal important and unique

elements of the water system through a series of installations at

stopping points along the river and canal, engaging residents and

increasing awareness of the watershed and the role it plays in the

citys life. The artist is New York-based Mary Miss and the project isone of a number of initiatives at White River State Park to turn it into

a four season destination and to make it the start of a 7-mile hiking/

biking loop.

The extensive use of asphalt and paving in American cities not

only isolates citizens from nature, but also reduces the ecosystem

services of trees, soils and waterways and requires costlyinfrastructure. Rain gardens, urban forestry programs and storm

water management are beautication strategies that can help city

ocials think dierently about infrastructure investments when

budget time rolls around.

TRANSLATE BEST PRACTICES INTO PUBLIC POLICYParks and recreation enthusiasts need to frame the role of green

space in storm water management practices and share best practices

with their Departments of Public Works. A demonstration project

could include using alleys for inltration.

RECLAIM CITY STREETS FOR GREEN SPACEPARKing Day is an annual, worldwide event that asks cities to

transform metered parking spots into temporary parks for the

public good for one day. It is designed to convey the fact that in

many cities, downtown streets are too wide and can be repurposed

for non-auto uses like bike lanes, wider sidewalks or pedestrian

zones and street scaping.





Walking and bike paths that connect city residents with cultural

districts facilitate healthy activity and social vibrancy. Indianapolis

already possesses one of the great urban cultural trails in the UnitedStatesthe Indianapolis Cultural Trail, winner of a prestigious

Round I TIGER grant from theh US Department of Transportation.

Residents can rent bikes and Segways to use on the Trail, which

connects all ve of the citys cultural districts in an award-winning

pedestrian greenway. Eorts are underway through the Indianapolis

Parks Department to make meaningful connections to the citys

system of bike paths and hiking trails.

8. BUILD GREEN NETWORKSThe public realm is the least expensive of all the things to change, and is the

most impactful. It is the thing that will change everyones life.

-David Rubin, Principal, OLIN





9. NURTURE NEIGHBORHOODSWe talk a lot about not just livability, but lovability. If you get the relationship

(with land, nature and each other) right, and if we nurture that relationship, we

can bring our cities to lovability.

- Will Rogers, President, Trust for Public Land

Small public spaces, quality landscapes and buildingscan contribute to the quality of life of residents in at-risk

neighborhoods when they are designed for culturally relevant

programs. Public spaces that are designed for neighborhoods

need to reect the cultural background and artistic sensitivity

of residents in the neighborhoods. These spaces become

more sustainable when the people are listened to, invited

to participate and encouraged to express themselves in the

process. In addition to creating quality landscape and buildings,

mural art is an eective medium to achieve these goals. There

is an opportunity to demonstrate how this could be done in

Indianapolis Martindale neighborhood. Successful examples

include the mural arts program in Philadelphia, Los Angeles,

and Chicago.





Re-conceiving the city as a park changes our minds about what it is

to be urban. By transforming an under-utilized asset along its West

Side Highway, New York Citys High Line has become one of the mostvisited attractions in the city, even surpassing the Metropolitan

Museum of Art with 5 million visitors in its rst year. The long-

defunct elevated rail line is now a mile-long pedestrian park and

greenway that connects Manhattans Meatpacking District to

Midtown. On any given day, people can be seen exercising, strolling

and even lounging on the abundant built-in furniture. Using tracks

as planters, for example, the High Line retains some of its original

form but has been otherwise entirely re-imagined. The result has

been transformative.

IMPLEMENT THE 10-MINUTE WALK RULEThe local team in Indianapolis saw the 10-minute walk as animportant aspiration. That is, no citizen should be more than 10

minutes from a green space, playground or public plaza, an ambitious

goal laid out for New York in PlaNYC that should be the ambition of

all cities. Equity mapping was identied a natural rst step toward

making this vision a reality in Indianapolis.

10. CONSIDER THE CITY A PARK

This is the century of the city. Its also the century of parks.

- Will Rogers, The Trust for Public Land





CHALLENGE PARTICIPANTS

Robert Altman, Loftus Engineering, Inc.

Kiera Amstutz, Indiana Humanities Council

John Andrews, Shiel Sexton Company

Charles Bantz, IUPUI

Alicia Barnett, Making Connections Indianapolis

Tammie Barney, The Greater Indianapolis Chamber of Com-

merce

Frank Basile, Gene B. Glick Company, Inc.Katrina Basile, F. C. Tucker Company

Ted Blahnik, Williams Creek Consulting

Chris Boardman, RATIO Architects

Ted Boehm, Indianapolis Cultural Development Commission

Phyllis Boyd, Green 3

Ryan Brady, Central Indiana Community Foundation

Matt Carter, MusicCrossroads

Tim Carter, Center for Urban Ecology

Rosemary Dorsa, Central Indiana Community Foundation

Adam Drisin, Florida International University School of Archi-

tecture

Kristina Ehlers, Loftus Engineering, Inc.

Robbi Farschman, Syracuse University Connective CorridorGreg Fennig, Indianapois Power & Light Company, Inc.

Tom Gallagher, RATIO Architects

Sanford Garner, A2SO4

Jane Gehlhausen, City of Indianapolis

Marianne Glick, Glick Training Associates

Pamela Griesemer, KERAMIDA, Inc.

Matthew Hale, Ablerock Design

Kren Haley, City of Indianapolis

Tom Harton, Indianapolis Business Journal

Barth Hendrickson, Browning Day Mullins Dierdorf Architects

Robert Herzog, Harrison College

Abbe Holmann, Cassidy Turley

Emily Holt

Steve Holt, Holt, Fleck & Romine, LLC

David Hoppe, NUVO

Ben Houle, Woolpert

Michael Huber, City of Indianapolis

Harriet Ivey, Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust

Ben Jennings, Ben Jennings Design LLC

Michael Kaufmann, Asthmatic Kitty records

Lindsay Kinkade, Rhode Island School of Design

Julia Klaiber, CEOs for Cities

Andre Lacy, LDI, Ltd.

Dave Lawrence, Arts Council of Indianapolis

Tad Lupton, beyond Architecture

Andy Lutz, City of Indianapolis

Je Mader, Mader Design LLC

Ali Malek, Jacobi, Toombs & Lanz, Inc.

Scott Minor, Green 3

Ann Murtlow, Indianapolis Power & Light Company

Jackie Nytes, Mapleton-Fall Creek Development Corp

Kevin Osburn, Rundell Ernstberger Associates

Gail Payne, The Goods: Thoughtful Marketing, Authentic Living

Greg Perry, Writer / ProducerBrent Pierson, Documentary Film Maker

Maury Plambeck

Cindy Porteous, Indianapolis Parks Foundation

Bob Reynolds, Barnes & Thornburg

Aaron Reynolds, Jacobi, Toombs & Lanz, Inc.

Mindy Ross, Art Strategies, LLC

David Roth, Synthesis Incorporated

Douglas Scarboro, City of Memphis

Scott Schroeder, Turner Construction Company

Tysha Sellers, Edna Martin Christian Center

Kathy Shorter, HARMONI

Jay Slifer, Jay Slifer Design

Mike SmithDenny Sponsel, RJE Furniture

Tony Steinhardt, RATIO Architects

Steven Stolen, Indiana Repertory Theatre

Brian Sullivan, Shiel Sexton

Bill Taft, Local Initiatives Support Corporation

Joanna Taft, Herron High School

Adam Thies, EDEN Collaborative

Jim Thomas, Hearthview Residential, LLC

Milt Thompson, Grand Slam Companies

Michael Twyman, Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust

Ryan Vaughn, Indianapolis City Council

Jim Walker, Big Car Gallery

Julia Watson, Indianapolis Downtown, Inc.Bob Weaver, Flat 12 Bierwerks

Joe Webb, Miami-Dade County Dept. of Parks & Recreation

Don Welsh, Indianapolis Convention & Visitors Bureau

Bob Whitt, White River State Park

Molly Wilkinson Chavers, IndyHub

Molly Williams, Indianapolis Downtown, Inc.

Rob Wynkoop, Indiana Department of Administration

Ace Yakey, Lilly Endowment, Inc.

Tamara Zahn, Indianapolis Dowtown Inc.

Raul Zavaleta, Volatus Advisors, LLC

SPECIAL THANKSThe Livability Challenge was made possible with generous support from the Central Indiana Community

Foundation and Indianapolis Downtown Inc. Additional in-kind support was provided by the Indiana Repertory

Theatre.


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