People City

People City is made up, but you'll recognize pieces of it from where you've already been. If you've sat in the sun in a public plaza, listening to the fountain bubble and musicians play for passersby, you've been here before. The widest sidewalks and bike lanes you've ever navigated are here, too. The crowd of protesters downtown, who carried their painted signs rolled up on the subway en route to City Hall, are still chanting through the streets. If you've congregated with your neighbors on your front porch, stoop, or outside the local corner store, you'll find yourself doing the same here. People City represents a vision of the city as it might be, but not as a utopian dreamscape. My goal here isn't to imagine away the realities of city life but rather to celebrate moments where cities do good by their people while critiquing where they fall short. I'm a student of cities, so this process is as much about learning for me as it is about sharing. Th…