Gathering Places Workshop Draws 60 Community Leaders
60 leaders from communities throughout western Washington participated in a February 20 Pomegranate Center workshop about community-crafted gathering places. Led by Milenko Matanovic, Executive Director, and Katya Matanovic, Managing Director, the workshop kicked of our Gathering Places Initiative and covered:
- How gathering places promote neighborhood identity, social vitality and health;
- Examples of successful projects; and
- How to engage residents as designers, planners, artists and builders.
More than two-thirds of participants said they would be interested in a series of follow-up workshops on Pomegranate Center’s model and process. And 25 percent said that they were very likely to submit a proposal to our pilot Gathering Places Initiative to be awarded free planning and design services from Pomegranate Center, and create a gathering place for their own community.
Here are some comments from participants.
“Thank you very much…a marvelous presentation of the model and design process.”
“Eastern Washington could benefit from these models. Perhaps you could schedule workshops and help create projects there.”
“Such an inspiring approach. Reminds me of micro-credit—really community-driven.”
“Funders should welcome the opportunity to funnel dollars through your organization, due to your wisdom and expertise.”