welcoming, vibrant downtown spaces
Making Downtown a more welcoming place for visitors and residents, Town Green Special Services District enhanced public gathering places through street furniture, upgrading public plazas, events, and transforming walls and vacant storefront windows with public art.
Over three years, Town Green District has improved three public plazas, installed 22 vacant storefront creative displays, painted the first three projects of an annual public mural program, and developed a growing series of public events that drew thousands of visitors before the pandemic. During the pandemic, the Town Green District has been supporting downtown business through e-commerce platforms, safe delivery programs, and outdoor public seating with experimental street closures.
Read the Town Green pre-COVID impact report.
Public Plazas
Three years of physical improvements to public outdoor spaces aimed to make downtown a more welcoming place for residents and visitors by increasing amenities for public events and casual daily use.
Temple Street Plaza
Framed on one side by the iconic Varini “square with four circles”, Temple St Plaza offers shaded public seating, outdoor games, and event space nestled between downtown restaurants and nightlife. Resurfaced green spaces have been filled with public furniture (some made by MakeHaven members) for casual use and events, which have been supported with an electrical hookup for performances. Additional improvements include updated lighting bollards and pavement repairs.
Pitkin Plaza
Filled with outdoor seating for summer dining, Pitkin Plaza brings together crowds for special events, like the popular public screenings of the World Cup. Alongside repairs to the ground brickwork, improvements include lighting and planters, a screen to separate dumpsters from the plaza, and equipment to be used for site-specific events like the public Movies in the Plaza series.
Center Alley
Previously an entryway to the private space of the Ninth Square Residences, moved fences, a dumpster barrier, and landscaping improvements have created an additional public space in the Ninth Square supported by Beacon, the complex’s new owner. Overhead string lighting and resurfaced pavement offer space for tents at events like the Night Market and On9 series, with an eventual pedestrian connection to State Street and the State House.
Windowed Worlds
Windowed Worlds uses art installations in empty storefronts to create welcoming, vibrant commercial corridors downtown. Collaborating with property owners, artists, woodworkers, and community organizations, Town Green has installed 22 storefront displays in the last three years, improving the pedestrian experience downtown and supporting local creatives.
View their gallery of installations and their report on 2020’s progress.
Straight Up Art - 2020 Straight Up Art Summary
Launched as a Could Be Fund project in 2019, the Straight Up Art program installed three murals throughout the 9th Square and now, as Town Green District’s ongoing program, Straight Up Art has issued an active call for 2021 murals due on February 10th.