By Aaron Koch, Mayors' Institute on City Design, Acting Executive Director
March 1, 2004

The Mayors' Institute on City Design brought together mayors and design professionals from across the country February 4-6 in Charleston (SC) to discuss the importance of design in communities. The Mayors' Institute is an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts, established in 1986 and carried out in partnership with The U.S. Conference of Mayors and the American Architectural Foundation. This unique program has brought together over 600 mayors with a diverse group of design and development professionals since its inception. The goal of the Mayors' Institute is for mayors to return to their cities with greater insights on how they can implement solutions that will improve the quality of design in their cities.

The event kicked off with a dinner and lecture featuring Charleston Mayor Joseph P. Riley, Jr, host. The event participants, joined by a group of community leaders, heard Riley share lessons about how he made Charleston a model for successful urban design and development during his seven terms in office.

Eight mayors from around the nation participated in this session. Each mayor presented a specific project within their city for direct feedback from the assembled team of design and development experts. Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak sought ideas on redevelopment of a downtown industrial area into a neighborhood centered around a new ballpark. Anchorage Mayor Mark Begich presented the challenge of building a new convention center in his downtown. Dayton Mayor Rhine McLin received advice about the preservation and reuse of the city's historic Arcade Building. Anaheim Mayor Curt Pringle questioned how his city should best redevelop its civic core. Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates gained insight about how to proceed with a conference center development plan. Durham Mayor William Bell took away strategies about the best way to design the area surrounding a new event center. Lincoln Mayor Coleen Seng asked how her city could implement a major redevelopment plan for an area adjacent to downtown. Finally, participants shared ideas about how Bethlehem Mayor John Callahan could proceed with the redevelopment of the former Bethlehem Steel industrial site. These sessions were combined with individual presentations by the team of experts in order to provide specific recommendations and a broad overview on a variety of complex design and policy issues.

sked how her city could implement a major redevelopment plan for an area adjacent to downtown. Finally, participants shared ideas about how Bethlehem Mayor John Callahan could proceed with the redevelopment of the former Bethlehem Steel industrial site. These sessions were combined with individual presentations by the team of experts in order to provide specific recommendations and a broad overview on a variety of complex design and policy issues.

A special presentation was made by Parris Glendening, former Governor of Maryland and currently the President of the Smart Growth Leadership Institute. In his new role, Glendening works with state and local elected leaders to implement smart growth strategies. At the session, Glendening advocated that mayors have a critical role in creating policy that promotes sustainable development in our cities.

The mayors worked with an experienced group of design and development experts throughout the three-day event. Participating experts included Jaquelin Robertson, architect, New York City; Martha Schwartz, landscape architect, Cambridge (MA); Victor Dover, urban designer, Miami; Toni Griffin, urban planner, Washington (DC); Vince Graham, real estate developer, Charleston; Rick Chellman, transportation engineer, Ossipee (NH); Will Bruder, architect, Phoenix; Fred Bernstein, architectural journalist, New York City; and Jeff Speck, Director of Design for the National Endowment for the Arts.

The Mayors' Institute holds approximately six three-day sessions a year in locations around the country. Mayors who are interested in participating in one of these events should contact the Institute's Acting Executive Director, Aaron Koch, by phone at (202) 463-1390 or via email at micdinfo@micd.org. Additional information on the Mayors' Institute on City Design is available through links at usmayors.org or at http://www.micd.org.