Urban revitalization is no longer about large redevelopment projects that attempt to recreate entire sections of cities, or about inserting large scale affordable housing projects in challenged neighborhoods. Instead, a whole new way of thinking about urban revitalization has emerged. It is focused on smaller scale places that relate to the context of their neighborhoods, and on places that deal not only with "bricks and mortar", but with programs and activities that can contribute to both physical and emotional health of the community as well as with economic empowerment, academic advancement and community organization.

In cities across the country, innovative urban places are revitalizing their neighborhoods and cities. In moving beyond traditional models of urban redevelopment, creative thinkers have conceived of a wide range of projects that contribute to the health and vitality of cities. In every case these urban places make a real difference to the quality of life in their towns and communities. Because of the success and importance of these innovative models of community revitalization, the Bruner Loeb Forum has chosen Placemaking for Change: Innovations in Community Revitalization as the subject of its 2004-2005 Forums.

The 2004-2005 Bruner Loeb Forum will explore the impacts of each of these projects, what has made them successful, and how they can be adapted to other cities around the country. We invite you to join us in Cambridge on November 12, or at a city to be announced in the spring of 2005, to learn about the work of these remarkable places, and to celebrate their achievements.