Pleasant Street Parklet

Two of the most heavily-touristed cultural icons in Cincinnati, Findlay Public Market and Washington Park, are linked by a derelict, four block, residential connector called Pleasant Street. As development has boomed recently, certain streets have radically transformed from under populated, low-income neighborhoods into upper income restaurants and shops. Many streets in this Over the Rhine neighborhood have changed during this evolution and the imminent opening of the streetcar, adjacent to Pleasant Street, is destined to change the nature of Pleasant Street.

The goals of this studio were to engage with all Pleasant Street stakeholders to assess their relationship to the neighborhood and attain clarity about their perspectives on what is successful and what must change on Pleasant Street. This graduate architecture studio worked with students and faculty from the our School of Planning and School of Art in collaboration with the Corporation for Findlay Market, a “Pleasant Street Committee” comprised of representatives of local agencies, local residents and other stakeholders, to develop proposals for making Pleasant Street an inclusive, pedestrian-friendly environment.

Through fifteen weeks of community engagement and full-scale prototyping, our studio was able to provide a voice for the long-term residents of Pleasant Street, who had previously felt ignored amidst the development occurring around them. We created three public community engagement events that were held on empty lots on Pleasant Street. Through these events, we were able to get the residents directly involved with the ideation and physical creation of public places for their community.

The first event identified who comprises the Pleasant Street community and through a series of interactive events, began a conversation about what works and what needs improvement on Pleasant Street. The initial conversations identified that the community wanted increased safety (through lighting), places to sit, places to cook and eat and places for their kids to play. The students then began building prototype elements that the community tested at the second event. At the third event, the students built four Parklet designs that were deployed in four different parking spots on Pleasant Street. The final product of the studio was a cohesive design for our city’s first Parklet which was built in spring 2016 and installed in summer 2016.

Technical Description