Equity
Since streets both reflect and shape the communities they serve, they have become incredibly meaningful places for people working to create more equitable cities and communities.
Kansas City, Missouri © Lorraine Boogich / iStock
Navigating Main Streets as Places was produced in partnership by Project for Public Spaces and Main Street America.
How to Use
This one-stop-shop toolkit features guidance and best practices for rural downtowns and urban neighborhood commercial districts through three platforms: a downloadable handbook, a multi-part webinar series, and this online resource library, which includes a variety of new tools and links to transportation- and streets-focused resources, best practices, and research from across the country.
The handbook, webinar series, and online resource library are organized around three chapters to make it easy to connect the dots across the platforms: Chapter 1: Transportation Matters for Main Streets, Chapter 2: Nuts and Bolts of People-First Streets, and Chapter 3: Building a Better Street Together.
You can download the handbook, access the webinars, and navigate through the online resource library by clicking on the buttons below. Have a resource you’d like to contribute to the library? Please fill out this form.
Toolkit Themes
Navigating Main Streets as Places explores why transportation and streets matter for commercial districts by examining their potential costs and benefits across six key areas: equity, safety, health, economic vitality, environmental sustainability, and community. Learn more by clicking through the carousel below.
Safety
The atmosphere of our streetscapes and the practical design of streets can impact both the incidences of crime and the extent to which people fear the possibility of crime.
Health
The design of our streets can have profound impacts on public health outcomes. Main Streets can play an important role in fostering a culture of health.
Economic Vitality
Main Street leaders should support the most efficient use of their transportation systems as part of achieving sustainable economic vitality.
Environmental Sustainability
A well-designed, people-oriented street encourages environmental sustainability by emphasizing the inherent green features of Main Street district.
Community
Physical features and intentional community engagement are both at the heart of people-oriented street planning and design.
This publication was made possible through the generous support of the Anne T. and Robert M. Bass Foundation.
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