Community Engagement at WRT

We help create communities that engage, empower, and connect people.

Our practice is guided by equity, authentic engagement, placemaking, and resilience.

PLANNING AND DESIGN

Bartram Community Engagement Philadelphia, PA

We create resilient communities.

WRT views resilience as a holistic approach to the complex inter-related factors of community health and well-being. This approach helps communities guard against a wide range of impacts whether ecological, economic or social in their root causes.

We work across scales and disciplines to create forward-thinking, actionable solutions for the unique needs of the communities we serve.

This holistic approach aims to create socially vibrant, culturally distinctive, healthy, and sustainable places for people to live, learn, work, and play to their fullest—now and into the future.

PLANNING AND DESIGN

FringeArts Philadelphia, PA

We identify placemaking at all scales.

Activating the public realm is integral to improving quality of life, supporting inclusive growth, and integrating the shared values of communities. Uniting planning, architecture, and landscape architecture, placemaking is a transformative tool that shapes public spaces into equitable community places. We develop a true understanding of the unique character of a community to create places that enhance existing assets, strengthen connections between people and spaces, and promote healthier communities.

PLANNING AND DESIGN

Plan Lafayette Comprehensive Plan Lafayette, LA

We embrace community values.

The threads of a community create a sense of belonging, strength, comfort, and resiliency.

An understanding of these threads—shared stories, common values, a similar culture— forms a foundation, an authentic communcal voice, from which communities can build capacity, regenerate, and blossom.

We tailor engagement tools to enable residents to discover the distinct characteristics of their communities, as well as their needs and ambitions. Working alongside communities, we shape aspirational yet implementable plans that range in scale from neighborhood, corridor, and district plans, to regional and citywide plans, to park and resiliency master plans.

COMMUNITY DESIGN

Bartram Leadership Series Philadelphia, PA

We are committed to equity.

We believe equitable communities level the playing field for the most vulnerable citizens— homeless, low-income, youth, elderly, disabled, immigrant, refugee, and LGBTQ. Through our work we confront issues of housing affordability and insecurity, mitigating gentrification/displacement, advocating for environmental justice, supporting local economies, building local capacity, focusing on health and well-being, and rebalancing social determinants of health.

Imagine Austin Comprehensive Plan A comprehensive and implementable plan focused on broad-based community engagement; an environmentally, economically, and socially sustainable future in Austin, Texas.

What It Is WRT worked with the City of Austin to develop its first comprehensive plan since the 1970s.

Known for its creative economy and live music scene, Austin is experiencing rapid population growth accompanied by problems such as increasing traffic congestion and housing costs.

The Imagine Austin plan was guided by several action principles including growing as a compact connected city, integrating nature into the city, developing as an affordable and healthy community, and managing water and other environmental resources sustainably.

Authentic Engagement in Action Over 10,000 citizens were involved in the public participation process for the plan, which helped the team identify issues, develop alternative growth scenarios, and articulate a vision for Austin’s future.

The vision for the Austin of the future is a beacon of sustainability, social equity and economic opportunity; where diversity and creativity are celebrated; where community needs and values are recognized; where leadership comes from its citizens and where the necessities of life are accessible to all.

What We Did Planning + Urban Design Community Engagement Public Realm Design Economic Analysis + Policy Investment Strategies Capacity Building Ambassador Training Transportation Planning

Awards APA Sustainable Plan Award APA Austin, Blue Pencil & Gold Screen Award NAGC Comprehensive Planning Award

Clark-Fulton Master Plan A community-driven master plan envisioning a healthier, more equitable and sustainable future for Clark-Fulton in Cleveland, Ohio.

What It Is The Clark-Fulton neighborhood on Cleveland’s near west side suffered from a large-scale departure of its residents in the 1960’s due to a decline in job opportunities. Since then, the Clark-Fulton neighborhood has become the home to an incredibly diverse and vibrant population, receiving migrations of African Americans and Puerto Ricans, immigrants from Central and South America, and refugees from Bhutan, Somalia, Iraq, Burma, Democratic Republic of Congo.

Today, Clark-Fulton is home to about 12,000 residents, and the largest Hispanic population in Cleveland. Nearly 1 in 5 residents has limited English proficiency, and the community suffers from a poverty rate of almost 40% The Clark-Fulton Together master plan will address important community issues including racial equity and inclusion, full and equal access to housing, employment, health, safety, mobility, technology, and environmental sustainability. The plan will also prioritize, integrate, and align the implementation of the impressive variety of ongoing and planned investment initiatives so that they achieve holistic benefits for area residents and businesses.

Authentic Engagement in Action Our team implemented a culturally competent, bilingual engagement process through an "Ideas + Action Week" involving the community in a variety of engagement activities while navigating and adjusting to challenges related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In addition to utilizing technology, social media, phones, email, and traditional methods such as mailers and limited-in-person local events, WRT has created a website (www.ClarkFultonTogether. com) with interactive community mapping and survey tools to serve as the online home for the project, has led virtual focus groups that engaged over 120 stakeholders and community members, and recruited a team of Community Ambassadors to help shepherd the plan and ensure the plan is developed around the voices of community members.

This planning process helped the Clark-Fulton community remain connected and encouraged to help to shape their future.

What We Did Planning + Urban Design Community Engagement Public Realm Design Economic Analysis + Policy Investment Strategies Capacity Building Ambassador Training Transportation Planning

Our Parks, Our Future: Austin's Long Range Plan This Long-Range Plan is the city’s blueprint for new and improved parkland and recreation in Austin, it was critical that Austin PARD staff hear from as many people as possible while the plan is being developed.

What It Is Equity was a primary goal of the planning process and the goals for the public engagement plan included: 1) create a fun, culturally sensitive, inclusive and engaging process that celebrates and educates the community about the value of Austin parks; 2) design an engagement process that captures the public perception of current and future needs for the park system resulting in the development of core values and priorities; 3) involve a wide range of ages, races, ethnicities and hard-to-reach residents by providing multiple ways to engage; and 4) provide opportunities for engagement within the context of everyday activities.

During the planning process, the team reached thousands of community members, but had a laser-focus on communities of color, residents with limited English proficiency, LGBTQ community, and people with disabilities. Focus groups included seniors, accessibility advocates, Austin-based state schools for the Deaf and Blind/Visually-imparied, and untapped youth from communities of color.

This led to the inclusion of recommendations for welcoming, multilingual cohesive signage, allabilities playgrounds, and integration of community gardens and farmers markets in parks.

Authentic Engagement in Action Pop-up events throughout the process were held at diverse locations including the MLK Festival, Austin Pride Festival, and a local Asian grocery store with interpreters on site. The team conducted artsbased engagement activities and audio interviews intended to bring a deeper understanding of the role cultural facilities play in the lives of their users.

One critical aspect of the process was the online community-wide survey and statistically valid survey, demonstrating the community’s desired recreation amenities and programs. The survey link and text number were posted on hundreds of signs (English/Spanish) and placed throughout the park system and public bus interiors. The community survey garnered more than 4,500 entries and more than 9,500 individual comments, an unprecedented response.

What We Did Planning + Urban Design Community Engagement Economic Analysis + Policy Planning Investment Strategies Capacity Building Ambassador Training Transportation Planning

Awards APA Excellence in Sustainability Award APA National Planning Excellence Award

PHILADELPHIA

SAN FRANCISCO

1700 Market Street, Suite 2800 Philadelphia, PA 19103

478 Tehama Street, Suite 2B San Francisco, CA 94103

T: 215.732.5215

T: 415.575.4722

www.wrtdesign.com