Community Building

Our team has worked on many controversial and challenging projects in established neighborhoods.  We have found that a one-size fits all approach is not the best way to approach community engagement and we have developed a robust engagement toolkit ranging from community design workshops, projects site walkabouts, dedicated project website through the Bang the Table platform, and many other activities that will inform, consult, involve, and collaborate with all stakeholders. We work closely with the design and development team to understand the key project challenges, neighborhood dynamics, and the political landscape to develop a customized, effective and inclusive outreach strategy designed to both inform and engage the community.

Community Engagement

We emphasize that effective, adaptive and early community engagement is a primary driver in realizing a successful development project and as a means to demonstrate long-term commitment to a meaningful and inclusive public process. Our Team prides itself on transparent communication and will stress the importance of identifying ways for diverse voices to all have a say in any future scenarios. We will work especially hard to engage ALL stakeholders and create an inclusive approach that includes people with English as a second language, children, elderly, disabled, and other traditionally non-represented stakeholders to feel included and have an opportunity to participate. A sampling of our successful engagement & outreach approach includes:

• Integrating emotional, physical and intellectual engagement practices

• Innovative and interactive community participation projects

• Storytelling and visioning activities to find common ground and develop project goals

• Framing all opportunities for participation and how stakeholders can engage at the level that works for them

• Help stakeholders understand their roles and the roles and responsibilities of others involved in any decision process

• Consensus building and education around complex issues

• Community investment in a revitalized location

• No surprises at public hearings

Public Involvement

Our team prides itself in responsive, customized and tactical community engagement to ensure an appropriate, inclusive and constructive process. We don’t believe in a one-size-fits all approach. We work with our clients to develop a cost-effective and meaningful strategy to engage with the public. From the outset we work with the team to understand the goals and drivers of the project, process requirements and all aspects of potential community interest or concern. We will identify strategic and customized solutions to not only address concerns proactively, but we also identify opportunities and activities to engage with stakeholders in a productive, inclusive and proactive manner. Simultaneously, we strategically identify avenues to build support and engage advocates.

Additionally, we are accustomed to working with clients who have multiple levels of input and decision-making built into their processes. We develop strategies and tactics to engage them throughout the process in order to keep them informed, and supportive of current and future goals and developments. There are often many stakeholders involved with multiple agendas and expectations, which can sometimes result in delays and complications. Finding the common ground within those perspectives, balancing interests, exhibiting flexibility & transparency, building opportunities for shared learning will contribute to collaborative and successful outcomes.

Bang the Table Project Website

A project specific website can be a very effective and responsive tool for the community. Our team is experienced in building independent, branded websites using Bang the Table and other platforms for our clients to create an agile and responsive venue to exchange, post and share information. We have found that creating a standalone website helps break down perceptions between the community and the development team, while providing a trusted, agile, source of information that can be easily updated, enhanced and archived. We can create these websites quickly and efficiently, and the team has access to be able to update and change as desired. A few examples of our Bang the Table project sites include:

• Town of Parker’s My Mainstreet

• Town of Vail’s Engage Vail

• City of Louisville’s McCaslin Parcel O Redevelopment Study

Other Engagement Opportunities

Each engagement and outreach program is robust and continually changing to the needs of the project and the community. We are adaptable inorder to achieve the goals of every project and have a wealth of engagement and outreach tactics in our toolkit. A few of these tactics include:

• Walkabouts

• Design and planning charrettes

• Community storytelling and visioning

• FAQs

• Newsletters

• And more

Select Projects