Spaces to Places

Written by Michael Wagler, Main Street Iowa State Coordinator, Main Street Iowa.

There is a growing understanding in the economic development discipline that creating a place where people want to be is a critical element to creating a strong, sustainable, interconnected community and economic development strategy.

The National Association of REALTORS® encourages our state and local REALTOR® Associations to partner with others to make their communities better places to live. Our Placemaking Grant is available to our REALTOR® Associations to help fund the creation of new public spaces and destinations in a community. Since the launch of the grant in 2014, we have approved over almost $1 million in...

This year, NAR’s Placemaking Grant has a level 1 grant for up to $1,500 for pop-up and demonstration projects such as temporary bike lanes, parklets, trails and plazas. Demonstration and pop-up projects enable a community to test the viability of a program, project or plan before making...

One in three Americans don't have a park within a 10-minute walk (or half-mile) of their home.

Written by Dana Wall, Project Manager, The Street Plan Collaborative

You may have heard of Tactical Urbanism, the low-cost, short-term, nimble methodology for kick starting and advancing long-term projects related to street safety, public space, and more. What started as a guerrilla tactic for citizens to “take back their streets” has evolved into a sanctioned and sought-after project...

It’s a new year and it’s time to think about what you can to make your community a better place to live and to reflect back on how REALTORS® did just that.

“REALTORS^® don’t only sell homes; they sell neighborhoods and communities. REALTORS^®aid in improving and revitalizing neighborhoods with smart growth initiatives, helping create walkable, urban centers, which...

More and more organizations are seeing the value of placemaking and integrating it into their business models. The Urban Land Institute (ULI) has undertaken a placemaking project as part of their Building Healthy Places Initiative. ULI has helped advance the notion that placemaking adds value to real estate and urban environments.

ULI’s...

Written by Rick Capelli, Staff Liaison, St. Louis REALTORS® Foundation

In sports it’s often spelled out like this: “If you talk the talk, you’ve got to walk the walk.”

REALTORS® in St. Louis have made sure the spirit of this popular phrase is alive and well in 2018 and beyond when it comes to their profession. As builders of communities, and not just “home sellers”, St...

Written by Rachel Banner, Senior Program Manager at the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA)

As we all know, parks are essential to a vibrant community and research shows that when people have a park within a 10-minute walk of home, they and their surrounding communities have improved physical, mental, social, environmental, and economic health. Yet, one third of people in...

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Community Outreach Programs

Housing Opportunity Grant
Housing Opportunity Grants support state and local REALTOR® Associations’ affordable housing activities. The goal of the program is to position REALTORS® as leaders in improving their communities by creating affordable housing
opportunities.

Smart Growth Grant
Smart growth is an approach to development that encourages a mix of building types and uses, diverse housing and transportation options, development within existing neighborhoods, and community engagement. The Smart Growth Program offers state and local REALTOR® Associations to way to engage with government officials, community partners and the general public in planning and designing community’s future.

Diversity
Planned diversity initiatives makes good business sense. REALTOR® Associations with well-planned diversity programs create a stronger sense of community, particularly in neighborhoods with high concentrations of foreign-born and minority residents who are moving up the socioeconomic ladder and are buying homes.

NAR Placemaking Resources

Placemaking Guide: A Guide to Transform a Public Space into a Community Place
REALTORS® and state and local association staff can learn the details of Placemaking, the kinds of projects placemaking entails, how to organize them, and where to go for assistance and resources.

Placemaking Webinar Series
Our Placemaking Webinar Series will provide more in depth information on the various types of Placemaking and how REALTORS® were involved in Placemaking activities in their communities.

Placemaking Grant
The Placemaking Grant funds the creation of new public spaces, like pocket parks, trails & gardens, in a community. The grant focuses on “lighter, cheaper, quicker” placemaking projects, which can be built under a year and cost less than $200,000.