What if we decided to write a playbook for bringing community and vitality back to city centres? As a partnership of 10 urban areas from across Europe, the URBACT Cities@Heart network set out to do just that. Their approachable network guide and toolkit compile best practices and field experiences in city centre management and policy monitoring. Drawing inspiration from diverse local contexts, the network identified five common levers to create more vibrant and harmonious city centres. As key focus areas or levers, the playbook recommends supporting local commerce, promoting inclusive environments, fostering a shared governance, creating a city centre identity, and reinforcing residential life. For each of these five levers, concrete actions, best practices, and key indicators illuminate a path forward for cities across Europe. The toolkit turns 10 real-life experiences into methodologies to help diagnose your town center, activate vacant spaces, and calm traffic. One of the featured tools “Create a sense of place”, inspired by the City of Cesena (Italy), provides a step-by-step approach to transforming a gateway street leading to the city centre from a lackluster thoroughfare into a welcoming, buzzing public space.
Link to Tool (see below, click “Download the Documentation“)
Link to Transnational guide: CLICK HERE
