Photo credit: Ellen Xie/New York Restoration Project.

The New York Restoration Project is about to embark on an exciting project, and Charlotte will learn along with them.

The timing couldn’t be better. Charlotte is developing its Capital Improvement Plan with a focus on coordinated work in targeted neighborhoods.

In June, New York Restoration Project will launch a multi-year initiative to improve the quality of life in a high-need neighborhood by bringing every open space – vacant lots, parks, community gardens and sidewalks – to their full potential. Knight is supporting that process as well as having a Charlotte team “shadow” the process.

Dave Cable with Trees Charlotte will lead the Charlotte team, which will include representatives from the public health, urban design and planning, public safety and transportation sectors. For many of the planning sessions at the New York Restoration Project, Dave will be in the room participating. Sometimes, several members of the Charlotte team will travel to New York and observe.

Throughout the yearlong process, the Charlotte team will take what they’re hearing and explore together how it might apply in Charlotte. They’ll also share what they’re learning with co-workers, professional associations and the community, deepening our collective understanding of how such intentional neighborhood-based work can be designed.

Public sector participation is key, and City Manager Ron Carlee and Planning Director Debra Campbell have embraced the project.

On June 11, Dave will join professionals from several disciplines to discuss how to identify a project neighborhood, the applicable innovations from the fields represented and what the key criteria should be for evaluation. The discussion will inform the planning process – and officially begin the Charlotte shadowing experience.

I’m eager to see what Dave will report on along the way. Knight Foundation may support more visible projects, but I can really see the potential of this one to positively affect this city in the years to come. I’m grateful that Trees Charlotte, its executive director and board, and our public sector leadership and staff are willing to dig in and see what we can take away from this process in New York.

Susan Patterson is the Charlotte program director for Knight Foundation.