Author: Public Works Partners

New Strategies for a New Reality: Cloudburst Flooding

When you think of stormwater management, what do you think of? If you thought of water trailing down city streets and flowing into storm drains that lead into a sewer system or local waterways, you’d be right. But that is only one part of the stormwater management puzzle. Green infrastructure and public spaces also play […]

Thinking about an agile assessment? This tool is for you

What is Agile Assessment? Agile assessments evaluate program impact and efficiency, provide performance management and optimization, and offer actionable feedback for clients. Public Works Partners employs a range of methods to conduct thorough assessments on a specific topic in a short period of time–usually less than two months. We collect data through a variety of […]

Evaluate and Innovate: Using Evaluation Tools to Ensure Long-Term Success

One of the biggest misconceptions about evaluations is that their primary purpose is to fix problems. Short-term improvements are one of the benefits of an evaluation for sure, but they are far from their only intended outcome. When the Public Works Partners team is engaged to begin an evaluation–whether it be an organizational evaluation, implementation […]

Nor’easter Thoughts: Community Engagement in the Winter

Very few events can slow the breakneck pace of life in New York City like a heavy snowfall. As many of us experienced this weekend, a winter storm leads New Yorkers to stay at home, holed up and waiting for spring. Even in the absence of a blizzard, people are inclined to spend more time […]

What’s More Exciting than Infrastructure? Why the Infrastructure Bill is an Even Bigger Deal than You May Think.

Nothing quite excites an office of planners and policy analysts like a once-in-a-generation investment in infrastructure. The passage of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) is worth celebration, both from the folks in the business of building and from the public. In the coming months and years, the mild, yet relatively palpable, current public […]

A SWOT in the dark: Why now is the time to assess your organizational health

The last two years have been trying, tumultuous, and hard to plan for. With so many uncertainties facing businesses and, especially, nonprofits on a near-daily basis, many leaders went into survival mode. Planning could come later. Well, now it’s later. And now is the time to assess your organization’s financial and programmatic health. With so […]

The Thanksgiving Turkey Rush: Inside the Infrastructure that Makes the Holiday Possible

Everyone who celebrates has heard the origin of Thanksgiving: a celebration of plenty shared between colonists and the Wampanoag at Plymouth Colony. Despite the overwhelming national mythology around Thanksgiving, there are only two written accounts that depict the three-day festival, both of which describe a similar sense of “plenty” and of being “so far from […]

Bigger Budgets City-Wide Mean New Opportunities for Lasting Impact

Back in April, Public Works put together a run-down of the American Rescue Plan (ARP), identifying opportunities for nonprofits, civic organizations, and New York City communities stemming from the historic aid package. In May, the U.S. Department of the Treasury began releasing its funds, with $12.7 billion awarded to New York State and $5.9 billion […]

Why you should be paying attention to urban placemaking

What is Urban Placemaking? Urban Placemaking is not necessarily a new practice, but it is gaining prominence among planners throughout the United States. Contemporary placemaking emerged in the 1960s through the works of Jane Jacobs and William H. Whyte, who based their research on the social construction of urban areas. Their activism and sociological studies […]

We Have Options: Building Awareness Around NYC’s Mental Health Helpline, NYC Well

From the coverage of Simone Biles’ mental health struggles at the Tokyo 2020/2021 Olympics, to concern about the devastating collective toll of the COVID-19 pandemic on all of us, there is a growing public focus on developing appropriate responses to mental health needs and improving access to care. This focus has spurred a reexamination of […]

Composing a Rendering: 5 Tips from an Insider

Urban planners, landscape architects, architects, and designers of all kinds use renderings as a way to show clients conceptual ideas for a given space. This allows the audience to visualize a range of elements from aesthetics to function. While every firm and individual has a unique approach to developing a render, the mechanics are relatively […]

August Newsletter: Celeste is a Crain’s New York Notable Woman Business Owner!

Crain’s NY Recognizes Celeste Frye as a Notable Woman Business Owner In recognition of Celeste Frye’s leadership throughout the pandemic and over the past 10 years, as well as her commitment to supporting her local communities, Crain’s New York has honored Celeste as one of its 2021 Notable Women Business Owners. Over the past year […]