Omaha By Design - The Public Space

Not Waiting for Santa Claus

A Place Game Workshop team observes the scene in Benson.

My dad always pulled out all the stops at Christmas time. I suspect he was up most of the night on Christmas Eve arranging the chemistry set or setting up the Red Ryder Air Rifle with targets just as he imagined Santa might.

He worked long and hard to keep us believing in Santa Claus. I recall one particularly special Christmas when we trooped down to the basement before dawn to find some 50 square feet of model train layout chugging away where all had been silent just hours before when we returned from midnight church services.

But as I became a teenager, I rebelled. Although I loved my dad and what he did for us, there came a time where I wanted to do things for myself. As a Baby Boomer, I sometimes worry that many in my generation and those that followed have not yet taken that step and may still be waiting for Santa Claus.

Many seem to be hanging around hoping that somebody else will make our cities and neighborhoods better for us. I suspect that Robert Putnam, author of Bowling Alone, has found evidence for this conclusion. He conducted nearly half a million interviews over the last 25 years showing that participation in clubs and civic organizations is down by more than half, and involvement in community life, such as public meetings, is down by 35 percent.

We need to re-engage with our communities and understand that the world doesn’t stop at our property lines. If we want great neighborhoods and public spaces, we have to make that happen ourselves, because Santa Claus has left the building.

The ideas begin to flow during a Place Game brainstorming session.

From its very inception, Omaha by Design has endeavored to help community groups help themselves. We are not Santa Claus, but we can show you how to be your own Santa when it comes to public spaces around the corner and down the block.

Our principle tool is the Place Game Workshop. The Place Game was developed by the Project for Public Spaces (PPS). PPS is internationally known for the design and management of public spaces, based on the pioneering Street Life Project of writer-sociologist William H. Whyte.

The very first of PPS’s Eleven Principles for Creating Great Community Places is simple - the community is the expert. That’s why it is so important that as many people as possible get involved.

I’ve been facilitating Place Games for more than five years now, and it’s one of the few situations where I keep my mouth shut except to ask the occasional question.

Why am I so uncharacteristically quiet?

Because the Place Gamers consistently bring fascinating historical perspectives, insights about how a place functions, an understanding of the critical issues and what is meaningful to the people of the area.

And because I never fail to be astounded by the creativity of the participants.

So, if you think your public spaces can be better, you don’t have to go it alone. Just give us a call. You won’t wake up to a bright shiny new neighborhood on Christmas morning, but we can sure show you how to get there.

Find out more about the Place Game process.