Media Coverage 2007



APA's Great Places Celebrates Recovery in New Orleans	Washington, D.C. Mayor Adrian M. Fenty speaking at the ceremony in front of Eastern Market.

On November 10, 2007, the American Planning Association participated in the St. Charles Avenue streetcar celebrations organized by the New Orleans Regional Transit Authority and the New Orleans Metropolitan Convention and Visitors Bureau. APA was proud to showcase the reconnection of the streetcar line as a return to normalcy for local residents still suffering from the damage of Hurricane Katrina, and as an enduring example of the value communities derive when they use planning to invest in themselves and their future.

In a special ceremony, Michael McAnelly, FAICP, APA Region III Director, and Stephen Villavaso, FAICP, president of APA's Louisiana Chapter, recognized St. Charles Avenue as one of 10 Great Streets in America for 2007. Among pomp fit for Mardi Gras, McNelly and APA staff rode in the inaugural trolley car, which reconnected the St. Charles Avenue route of the oldest, continually operating streetcar line in the world. Read full coverage from The Times-Picayune and Gambit Weekly.

The event followed similar celebrations held throughout October 2007, when the American Planning Association announced its first 10 Great Streets and 10 Great Neighborhoods in America. The response was unprecedented publicity about the program and our organization — more than 130 television spots, 100 articles, and numerous blog entries. Because of this new initiative, people all across the U.S. are seeing the results of good planning and how planning can help create communities of lasting value.

To join APA in celebrating America's great streets, neighborhoods, and public spaces, tell us about your Great Place by making a suggestion online.

Images (clockwise): The Warren Easton High School marching band begins to lead the trolley line procession down St. Charles Avenue; Michael McAnelly prepares to board the inaugural trolley car reconnecting the line; Thousands of people crowded St. Charles Avenue to welcome the return of the trolley cars; and Michael McAnelly and Stephen Villavaso present the Great Places in America certificate to Kenya Smith (center), Executive Assistant to the Mayor of New Orleans. Photos by Richard Lukas.

2007 Great Streets and Neighborhoods
These places are the "bright lights" for other communities to follow — examples of strong, healthy places where people care about where they live, work, and play. APA hopes this program encourages more people to think about their communities and how planning can help make it a great place to be. Communities across the country celebrated their street and neighborhood designations with local events, certification ceremonies, and press conferences. Together, these activities added to the growing conversation of what makes a Great Place.

See the 2007 Great Streets and Great Neighborhoods of America

About Great Places in America
Launched in spring 2007, Great Places in America is APA's flagship program celebrating places of exemplary character, quality, and planning. Places are selected annually and represent the gold standard for a true sense of place, cultural and historical interest, community involvement, and a vision for tomorrow.

By the Numbers
The American Planning Association's Great Places in America designations generated an overwhelming and diverse array of television, radio, print, and Internet coverage, including:

More than 130 network news broadcasts with a viewership over 20 million nationwide
More than 40 newspaper features covering a readership over 5 million nationwide
More than 110 major Internet sites reaching an audience over 15 million worldwide

Celebrate Your Great Place in 2008
Know of a great place in your community? Don't miss the opportunity to let the country know about it. Click here to offer a suggestions for the 2008 designation in three categories: Great Neighborhoods, Great Streets, and — new for 2008 — Great Public Spaces.

2007 Media Highlights

Great Streets

Great Neighborhoods

Bull Street
Savannah, Georgia
"Bull Street has been selected as one of the 10 great streets in the nation by a national planning association ..." Read full coverage from the Savannah Morning News and WSAV-TV

Canyon Road
Santa Fe, New Mexico
"Nobody planned Canyon Road, a narrow lane along the Santa Fe River that over the last century evolved from a residential neighborhood into a world-renowned arts district. But the city's effort at preserving Canyon Road's historic charm has nfluenced the American Planning Association to name it one of the nation's top 10 streets." Read full coverage from The Santa Fe New Mexican.

Delmar Loop
University City and St. Louis, Missouri
"The Delmar Loop is only 6 blocks long, but it's packed with vibrant energy. Half of The Loop is in University City, the other in St. Louis City." Read full coverage from KSDK-TV and The St. Louis-Post Dispatch.

Main Street
Northampton, Massachusetts
"It has the stately Academy of Music at one end and a famously banged-up railroad trestle at the other. In between are a score of buildings that hark back in style to the days when Grover Cleveland was president but offer sushi, artwork and Gortex parkas at their storefronts." Read full coverage from The Republican.

Monument Avenue
Richmond, Virginia
"The American Planning Association has confirmed what many people in Richmond have long believed: Monument Avenue is a true gem." Read full coverage from the Richmond-Times Dispatch and CBS 6.

North Michigan Avenue
Chicago, Illinois
"Michigan Avenue, known to locals as the 'Mag Mile' and 'Boul Mich,' was named one of the 10 Great Streets in America." Read full coverage from the Chicago Sun-Times.

Ocean Drive
Miami Beach, Florida
"The [American Planning Association] chose Ocean Drive as one of 10 Great Streets in America for 'its unique architectural legacy; citizen-led historic protection efforts; city-initiated mixed-use, pedestrian-oriented restoration and redevelopment; and on-going public support.'" Read full coverage from the Palm Beach Daily News.

125th Street
New York, New York
"[The American Planning Association] has just released its first two lists of 10 great streets and 10 great neighborhoods and — is anyone surprised? — New York City has a spot on each list." Read full coverage from The New York Times, The New York Sun, and Columbia Spectator.

St. Charles Avenue
New Orleans, Louisiana
"New Orleanians rejoiced Saturday afternoon as the historic St. Charles Avenue streetcar returned to part of its Uptown route..." Read full coverage from The Times-Picayune and Gambit Weekly.

South Temple Street
Salt Lake City, Utah
"In its 160-year history, South Temple has played host to temples and trolleys, prophets and protesters, symphonies and slam-dunks. Now the Salt Lake City street is home to a national distinction. It has been named one of '10 Great Streets in America' for 2007 by the American Planning Association." Read full coverage from The Salt Lake Tribune and the Deseret Morning News.

Chatham Village
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
"Entering Mt. Washington's Chatham Village is a bit like stumbling onto a soundstage built to resemble a quiet English country village." Read full coverage from the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Eastern Market
Washington, D.C.
"Just five months after a fire ravaged Eastern Market on Seventh Street SE on Capitol Hill, the Eastern Market neighborhood has been recognized as one of the nation's 10 Great Neighborhoods ..." Read full coverage from The Washington Post, DCist, and FOX.

Elmwood Village
Buffalo, New York
"Norwood Avenue resident Elaine Friedhaber doesn't need the nation's largest planning group to tell her that she lives in an awesome neighborhood. But she thinks the American Planning Association's selection of Elmwood Village as one of the nation's 10 great neighborhoods will help spread the word about a community that she has called home since 1970 ..." Read full coverage from the The Buffalo News and Buffalo Rising.

First Addition
Lake Oswego, Oregon
"Although the First Addition neighborhood in Lake Oswego changed as the housing market heated up in the last several years, the neighborhood still maintains its charm." Read full coverage from the Lake Oswego Review.

Hillcrest
San Diego, California
"Hillcrest has been designated as one of 10 Great Neighborhoods for 2007 through the American Planning Association's (APA) Great Places in America program." Read full coverage from The Daily Transcript.

North Beach
San Francisco, California
"San Francisco's North Beach has been celebrated through the years by poets and novelists. Now, add the American Planning Association to the chorus." Read full coverage from the San Francisco Chronicle and the San Francisco Examiner.

Old West Austin
Austin, Texas
"The Old West Austin neighborhood is getting recognition from a national group for its efforts to preserve character and diversity while maintaining a commitment to sustainability." Read full coverage from the Austin Business Journal, KVUE Television, and Austin American Statesman Blog.

Park Slope
Brooklyn, New York
"Park Slope is ready for its closeup. The leafy, brownstone-lined neighborhood, known for its picturesque streets and progressive politics, has been named one of the 10 best in the country by a national urban planning group." Read full coverage from The Daily News and The New York Times.

Pike Place Market
Seattle, Washington
"The American Planning Association cited Pike Place as having 'a history as rich and colorful as the produce it sells,' calling it 'Seattle's most compact, walkable and diverse neighborhood.'" Read full coverage from The Seattle Times and The Puget Sound Business Journal.

West Urbana
Urbana, Illinois
"Taking a walk through West Urbana's tree-lined streets during autumn reveals a bright mix of red, orange and yellow foliage shading the sidewalks and narrow streets. These results of West Urbana's sustainability efforts help create a community that residents enjoy living and working in." Read full coverage from The Daily Illini.

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