Our (Good) Friday update here at kickstART farmington highlights some great articles we’ve read this week dealing with art, creative placemaking, and building great communities. You’re sure to find some inspiration to make our community even better!

1. On Creative CityMaking: The initiative is designed to help artists shape the discourse on key urban issues and, hopefully, boost public engagement in the process.

2. On creating a safe storytelling space: Too often, underrepresented individuals in small communities are expected to move to the “big city” to feel safe or to find community, but this may not be a feasible option, especially in an economically depressed society. 

3. Enjoy a great video on the importance of place by Gracen Johnson:

4. America Needs a Tahrir Square: If public squares are essential to democracy, is their relative absence in modern American life bad for our democracy … It won’t solve all our democracy’s problems, but restoring spaces where Americans can interact across ideological, religious, racial, and class lines would be a promising start.

5. Suburbs Try to Prevent an Exodus as Young Adults Move to Cities and Stay: younger adults are becoming more drawn to denser, more compact urban environments that offer a number of amenities within walking distance of where they live.