Project for Public Spaces, Portland Style

By Taylor Jenks

Taylor JenksGEOG 346April, 1st, 2014

Project for Public Spaces, Portland Style.

As North American societies become progressively more individualized, the

concept of public space and its initiatives appear be consistently tabled to make

room for other forms of community “development” such as subdivisions and

marketable “green” projects. Where cities and towns around the world have

centuries old squares with magnificent water fountains, stores and vendors flooding

out onto the cobblestone streets, and masses of people loudly and emotionally

discussing the latest football game, in North America we often have cold, sterile

breaks in skyscrapers, with benches made for one, (to sit, never to lie down,), and

city regulation signs littering the landscape. This is not to forget, of course, that

there are exceptions.

What often lacks, as a result, are communal spaces where recreation,

relaxation, and interaction, can occur, all at the same time, and include people from

all walks of life. A place where people from different social worlds can cross paths

and be exposed to new or alternative ways of thinking and doing. To argue that

properly planned public spaces can fix all of a community’s social challenges would

be false, but a balance between planned but not too highly regulated would allow for

places where life can happen:; third spaces.

The Project for Public Spaces is a non-profit planning, design and educational

organization started in 1975 from the principleals of William H. Whyte (Project for

Public Spaces, About, n.d.). Its goal of helping people to create and sustain public

spaces that build stronger communities is based on the approach of place making

(Project for Public Spaces, Placemaking, n.d.). To summarize:

It is the quiet transformation process rooted in community-based participation that inspires people to create and improve public spaces, to shape the public realm, and maximize shared value within the community; thus facilitating connections to collectively shape our worlds and our future on this planet (Project for Public Spaces, Placemaking, n.d.)

The Project for Public Spaces (PPS,) highlights eight forms of public space

that can be created or discovered in communities, as well as factors that make these

spaces good places (Project for Public Spaces, About, n.d.). Portland’s public spaces

touch each of these categories and analyses will reveal whether they have been

successful.

1. Streets and Transit

By reclaiming these spaces from vehicles, and planning them for people, you

intuitively, will attract people rather than traffic (Project for Public Spaces, Streets

and Traffic n.d.) This can be as simple as designating lanes for bikes, broadening

sidewalk space for pedestrians, or creating shared spaces where one form of

transportation meets the other. This aspect of public space is perhaps what Portland

does best as the city has worked at reclaiming these spaces from vehicles in many

ways. For one there is a boardwalk sidewalk that runs for four blocks along NW 10th

avenue in the Pearl district, leading pedestrians toward the riverfront. Although

this space is still alongside the vehicle-focused road, it has created an area of

interest for pedestrians out in front of plenty of small businesses, and is an

alternative to regular stark sidewalks as it is extremely wide, and even offers

Adirondack chairs for sitting. ⱱ

Figure 1: Boardwalk Sidewalk [Photograph] taken March, 2014 by Taylor Jenks [good to use photos]

Street seating is another initiative that has been taken on by the city, in

which businesses, non-profits or everyday people can apply to have parking stalls

reclaimed as public spaces, (and in other versions as bike parking) (City of Portland,

Street Seats, 2014.) [either put period after parenthetical reference or before]

Where a business may have parking for three on the street in front, they can pay a

$500 application/analysis fee to transition this space into seating in one of two

forms (Street Seats, 2014). One is private street seating which may belong to a

restaurant, coffee shop etc., where patrons can sit outside and be served, or the

other is public street seating which is open to any passer-by (Street Seats, 2014).

Both require proof of public support, adherence to the design guidelines, and that

the lost parking revenues be paid to the city as rent, which is between two and

seven thousand dollars a year (Street Seats, 2014). In addition, the private street

seats pays a $105/linear foot fee [per year?] for the café-seating permit (Street

Seats, 2014). Although it seems pricy, the program has been a relative success with 8

out of 9 current locations re-applied for 2014, and eleven new applications were

received and which will be reviewed (Street Seats, 2014). Both concepts add square

footage to the public space of the sidewalk, diversifying its use from purely efficient

movement of people to the enjoyment of space and taking a moment to sit and

relax.ⱱ

Figure 2 (left): Private Street Seating. [Image] Retrieved April 6, 2014 from: Portland Bureau of

Transportation, http://www.portlandoregon.gov/transportation/59158

Figure 3 (right): Public Street Seating. [Image] Retrieved April 6, 2014 from: Portland Bureau of

Transportation, http://www.portlandoregon.gov/transportation/59158

Finally the division of the street itself in Portland has provided alternatives

to personal automobiles, with a light rail system that runs in a N/S and E/W grid

pattern through the downtown, as well as painted bike lanes, the streets becomes

shared spaces for all. This alternative use of streets as public spaces allow for

discourse to occur between public transit users, and a collective to be built amongst

cyclists. With the city identifying cyclists and the need for their own space, other

drivers do as well and have built [developed?] respect for them.

2. Markets

By this, PPS doesn’t meant supermarkets, it means street markets; ones in

which likely local products are sold to patrons in public spaces (Project for Public

Spaces, Public Markets, n.d.). They were the original public spaces in fact,; where

people got their supplies and socialized. You might think of Seattle as the epitome of

street markets, which now it is;, however, if you were in Portland after 1914, the

four blocks of canvas-roofed vendors might have made you reconsider (Engemen,

2014). As an impediment to the creation of a thoroughfare in the mid 1920s, the

market was relocated to a 600 foot long building along the Willamette riverfront

where it stood as a supermarket until its closure in 1942 due to its poor location and

shopping habits after the depression (Engemen, 2014). This space has been since

reclaimed as park space, and the James Beard Public Market is attempting to fill the

market void, while the vendor concept has been re-born in a new fashion: fFood cart

vendors (Engemen, 2014).

Both Whyte and the PPS highlight the importance of food in creating activity

in a public space, and the cart form is no exception. Sarah Iannarone of First Stop

Portland suggested in her tour that, in part as a response to the economic downturn,

which took cars off the streets and left parking lots opening up, vendors began filling

them with pods of vehicle-sized restaurants. Much of the world has hung onto, like

its plazas and open spaces, the vendor economy, which can support up to 25% of

their populations; though North America had seemingly forgotten the trend since

the 1970s, until this most recent wave (Newman, 2012). Over 500 food carts now

exist within the city of Portland itself, some standing alone, while others creating

attractions as pods of carts, such as the one on the corner of SW 10th and

Washington avenue covering the perimeter of one full block of parking (Foodcarts

Portland, 2014). Aside from the urban containment boundary that is talked about in

the planning world, this food vendor trend is what Portland now appears to be

renowned for in much of of the public’s eyes. They are effective as impromptu

public spaces, at their job of drawing people to them. Whether or not the people

stay once they come is another story and is likely due to supporting infrastructure,

but regardless it is getting people outside to explore different cultures via their food,

and, given their relatively inexpensive prices, it isn’t a very discriminatory.

Figure 4: Food Carts [Photograph] taken March 2014 by Taylor Jenks

3. Waterfronts

As was mentioned in section 2, there was a large market that existed along

the Willamette River until in 1969 when it was demolished (Engemen, 2008). What

stands now is the city’s largest link to the river, Tom McCall Waterfront Park. The

river that generated the City of Portland has been re-connected to the people as a

walkway and green space. Whyte and the PPS make note of the influence of water in

a public space and flowing water particularly, as it is calming and drowns out the

noises of the city; but better than a fountain one can throw pennies into, the natural

river that has existed throughout the city’s entire history provides not only a link to

other people but to people in the past as well (Whyte, 1988) (Project for Public

Spaces, Waterfronts, n.d.). They may just be jogging or cycling by, but interaction

doesn’t have to be speaking to one another, it can simply be a nod or even the

comfort of another’s presence. ⱱ

Figure 5: Terra Galleria, (n.d.). Tom McCall Waterfront Park. [Image] Retrieved April 6th from:

http://www.terragalleria.com/images/us-nw/usor37644.jpeg

4. Parks

Living on Vancouver Island one might take for granted the amount of green

space available to us at any given time, but placed in a city, and one that has

sprawled up to its boundaries at fairly low densities, the value of park space is

appreciated. Portland’s park system began between 1852 and 1869 with donations

of land from William Chapman, Daniel Lownsdale, and John Ccouch to create the

strip of park blocks that runs through the city (City of Portland, Parks History, 2014).

Other donations of land have been made and some have gone, but this strip remains

a prominent aspect of the parks system and connects other public spaces together.

Figure 6: Portland’s Park Linkages [Map] Retrieved April 6, 2014 from:

https://maps.google.ca/maps?client=safari&q=portland+map&oe=UTF-8&ie=UTF-

8&ei=9ixGU9ezGqOCyAHorIH4Aw&ved=0CAkQ_AUoAg

Portland’s other parks include the Rose Test Gardens, which is a very specific

destination, not so much of a common place; Tanner Ssprings park which as Mark

Raggett from Portland Urban Design Group calls it is , the read a book park; as it is a

small space, yet offers a water feature as Whyte recommends; Mill Ends park which

is the world’s smallest park at the size of a car tire; and the newly constructed “the

Fields” park in the north end of town which quite literally is a field with a sandy dog

park. From old and organically developed to new and purposefully constructed,

Portland offers a wide variety of park spaces;, however that does not ensure their

equal occupancy for all. [previous sentence, while interesting, is a bit ungainly] The

City’s Parks 2020 plan suggests that each sector of the city is missing at least one

aspect of park or recreation space whether that isthey be natural resource areas

[what would they be?], or developed community parks. This it presents a challenge

when there is already limited land (City of Portland, 2014).

5. Campuses

Harvard Common Spaces Program suggests that a well-rounded education

requires places for sSerendipitous encounters and chances for all players of the

campus community to come together (Project for Public Spaces, Campuses, n.d.) This

has been a criticism of VIU’s campus as it segregates departments depending on

their location without much common space. Although it is difficult to speak to the

feeling of the campuses of Portland’s universities without having been there, the

virtual tour of Portland State University shows three things that stand out. The first

is that their location within the downtown core offers a connection the surrounding

community and an exchange of services and opportunities (Portland State

University, n.d.).ⱱ The second is that they are connected to the rest of the city via

the streetcar system and the Light rail system allowing for accessibility and the

elimination of vehicle traffic entering the campus (Portland State University, n.d.).ⱱ

Finally, in continuing the city’s pattern of park blocks through the campus they have

allowed for these places of interaction and impromptu encounters to sustain

(Portland State University, n.d.).ⱱ

6. Squares

“What attracts people is other people” according to Whyte, and that is never

more noticeable than in public squares (1988; ) (Project for Public Spaces, Squares,

n.d.). To see an empty expanse of concrete is deterring and can even be frightening

as you’re not sure if there is a reason it’s empty; yet to see a square of people, one

would be intrigued to go see what is going on.ⱱ Pioneer Courthouse Square in

Portland is renowned as a public square, as it checks many of the boxes Whyte

suggests as making a public space successful (1988). For example the square is

completely public, and open to the streets around it, therefore eliminating any sense

of entrapment. The staircase provides plenty of seating space, and a ramp that

winds through to be accessible to all. The open space in the middle offers sunshine

as well as places to stop and talk to those you meet, and, when markets occur there,

plenty of vending space. There is a small section of refuge where the raising of one

level acts as a wall to that below it, and the bones of an overhang that doesn’t offer

protection from rain, but a sense of security nonetheless. The Starbucks on the

upper level offers another reason to enter the space, as does the weather machine

[what is?], the tourism information, the echoing area under the overhang, and the

names stamped into each brick of those who sponsored the reconstruction of the

square. Thus even without a running water feature, moveable chairs and very much

greenery aside from what surrounds the square, we have nonetheless reached the

ten reasons to enter the space which is the threshold Whyte suggests 1988). If you

were to add these features, plus the food carts that were originally planned for the

perimeter, I would whole-heartedly agree it is the ultimate public space.

Figure 7: Pioneer Courthouse Square [image] Retrieved April 8th, 2014 from:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/23/Pioneer_Courthouse_Square_-

_west_half.jpg

7. Downtowns

PPS suggests, if you want village behavior, then build a village (Downtowns,

n.d.). Well it may be hard to conceptualize what a city would look like in village

form, it appears Portland has struck a nice balance. Simple design techniques like

low building heights, and districts each with their own building style, street light

design, and sidewalk pattern, has created the feeling of multiple small villages

within a city. The downtown is the heart of the city and has a large expanse of

public space in itself. To create a feeling of a common place I would argue would

befor to incorporatinge the rest of the elements mentioned, into the downtown

space, such as multi-use roadways, squares, parks, campuses, markets and a

waterfront if you’ve got one. Public Buildings are also usually located in downtowns,

which is the final form of public space PPS mentions.

8. Public Buildings

This can be in the form of City Halls, courthouses, or as evident in Portland,

libraries as well (Project for Public Spaces, Public Buildings, n.d.). The public library

has become a place of refuge for some groups of society to escape the day and have

access to knowledge, and technology but even more -so just social interaction.

There are all types of people who use the library from educated adults to students to

the elderly, all ethnicities, and nearly all socio-economic standings. Where one may

be discriminated against while loitering in a park, they can grab a book and loiter in

the library as much as they please as long as they follow simple rules like noise

levels and basic matters of hygiene. Surprisingly many homeless in the Portland

area have access to email accounts and web services, partly because of this service,

and partly because of the citywide Wi-Fi network.ⱱ This, one could argue, adds a

whole other dimension to inclusion in public spaces, as it is often argued whether

these virtual spaces should in fact be recognized as public spaces at all. They too are

exclusive due to the costs of connection and/or devices to support such, but

otherwise people’s online interaction is not based on wealth, education, or façade

factors, but instead a common language and the ability to type.ⱱ

According to the City website there are 4,000 homeless people that sleep on

the streets of Portland any given night, likely in part, due to the US’ lack of a social

safety net (City of Portland, Ending Homelessness, n.d.). Although the city has

created a ten year plan to end the trend, as well as providing socially assisted or

“affordable housing,” (however one might interpret that,), the city’s approach to

dealing with those who remain in public spaces for a lack of anywhere else to go is

deficient (City of Portland, Ending Homelessness, n.d.). There is a homeless camp

just outside of Chinatown that has formed as part of the non-profit Right to Dream;,

however, this camp is on private property donated to the cause, as there are still no

public spaces to go to. The City of Portland is currently attempting to re-propose a

bill that would give them the ability to create local rules in dealing with homeless,

therefore threatening that old rules, such as rousting people for sitting on sidewalks,

would be re-introduced (Goldberg, 2014). [not very progressive!] In protest,

citizens showed up to city hall in mid- March with torches and pitchforks. [sounds

somewhat medieval!]

Public buildings are often places of political protest or action as well, as we

see with the lawns of parliament buildings in Victoria or the steps of the art gallery

in Vancouver.ⱱ Portland’s City hall in this case backs onto the chunk of green space

connected to Chapman Square, which in history was ironically a public space

exclusive to females [interesting], as refuge from the dirty streets of the era’s

workingmen, but more recently it was the site of Portland’s Occupy Movement. This

use of public space for protest is one of intrigue. Public spaces, as areas of

interaction, should naturally be places of civic involvement, whether it’s in the form

of debates with other citizens, or public demonstrations, they should be facilitating

democratic participation;, yet this is [often?] not the case. Demonstrators are

cleared out, as was the case in Portland, penalized, and the situation returns to what

it was before. But as a space supposedly belonging to the public, should the public

not decide what occurs within it? Is it just, that the decision of a few “higher-ups”

would inhibit the use of a space in the way a large group sees fit? I think not. [of

course there many ‘publics’]

Despite Portland’s progressive repertoire and their vast expanse of public

space, they are still highly regulateing the use of such spaces with park rules

surrounding loitering, skateboarding, laying on benches, entering the park with

garbage, dog leash length, seating options, and whether or not you can jump in the

river (thought this would be an obvious decision for people,); therefore those who

use the public space are being limited (Title 20 Parks, 2014). Without an inclusive

group, one cannot claim a space to be “public.”

What is necessary to properly analyze this city, is realizing it’s about more

than just providing public spaces, its about common PLACES; places where people

stop and talk, they inhabit, and they make their own. These places can’t be created

by planning departments, although the land can be set aside;, they occur through

organic development, through allowing all forms of people to participate, and

through just being, the way we naturally ought to be.

[very nice focused essay, Taylor. Consider re-submitting with corrections for

a web site on urban success stories; A/A-; just work on some minor writing issues]

References

City of Portland. (2014). Ending Homelessness. Retrieved April 6, 2014 from Portland

Housing Bureau: http://www.portlandoregon.gov/phb/60643

City of Portland. (2014). Parks and Recreation; History 1852-1900. Retrieved from:

https://www.portlandoregon.gov/parks/article/95955

City of Portland. (n.d.) Parks 2020 Vision. Retrieved April 6, 2014 from:

https://www.portlandoregon.gov/parks/article/89433

City of Portland. (2014). Street Seats, Retrieved from: Portland Bureau of

Transportation http://www.portlandoregon.gov/transportation/59158

Engemen, Richard. (2008). Oregon Encyclopedia; Portland Public Market. Retrieved

April 6, 2014 from:

http://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/entry/view/portland_public_market/

Foodcarts Portland, (2014). Home. Retrieved April 6, 2014 from:

http://www.foodcartsportland.com/

Goldberg, Eleanor. (February 15, 2014). Portland Pitchforks and Torches Protest

Mayor’s Crackdown on Homeless. Popular Resistance [web]. Retrieved from:

http://www.popularresistance.org/portland-pitchforks-torches-protest-

mayors-crackdown-on-homeless/

Newman, L. L., & Burnett, K. (2012). Street food and vibrant urban spaces: Lessons

from Portland, Oregon. Local Environment, 18(2), 1-16.

doi:10.1080/13549839.2012.72957

Portland State University. (n.d.) Virtual Campus Tour. Retrieved April 6, 2014 from:

https://www.sa.pdx.edu/form/arr/VirtualCampusTour/virtual_campus_tour.ht

ml

Project for Public Spaces. (n.d.) About. Retrieved March 25, 2014 from:

http://www.pps.org/about/

Project for Public Spaces. (n.d.) Campuses. Retrieved March 25, 2014 from:

http://www.pps.org/campuses/

Project for Public Spaces. (n.d.) Downtowns. Retrieved March 25, 2014 from:

http://www.pps.org/downtowns/

Project for Public Spaces. (n.d.) Parks. Retrieved March 25, 2014 from:

http://www.pps.org/parks/

Project for Public Spaces. (n.d.) Public Buildings. Retrieved March 25, 2014 from:

http://www.pps.org/civic-centers/

Project for Public Spaces. (n.d.) Public Markets. Retrieved March 25, 2014 from:

http://www.pps.org/markets/

Project for Public Spaces. (n.d.) Squares. Retrieved March 25, 2014 from:

http://www.pps.org/squares/

Project for Public Spaces. (n.d.) Streets and Transit. Retrieved March 25, 2014 from:

http://www.pps.org/transportation/

Project for Public Spaces. (n.d.) Waterfront. Retrieved March 25, 2014 from:

http://www.pps.org/waterfronts/

Project for Public Spaces. (n.d.) What is Placemaking. Retrieved March 25, 2014

from: http://www.pps.org/reference/what_is_placemaking/

Title 20 Parks: Chapter 20.12 Prohibited Conduct. (2014). Retrieved April 6, 2014

from: http://www.portlandonline.com/Auditor/index.cfm?

c=28627#cid_147778

Whyte, W.H. (Director). (1988). Social Life of Small Spaces [Motion Picture]. United

States: Direct Cinema Limited