The essential first step in authentic,
aspirational, and actionable public space planning
Author | Clay Dills, AIA
President, Dills Architects
There is a moment in almost every planning process when the conversation shifts from cataloguing buildings and spaces to sharing stories of local market finds; shortcuts to school; fishing with a grandparent; the smell of the neighborhood convenience store; or a child taking the school bus for the first time. Long after the details of a physical place fade from memory, an emotional imprint remains.
Through these stories of lived experience, we come to understand the character and quality of a place. For Dills, planning projects begin here. Though every place is different, this step in the process is remarkably consistent.
The Central Beach Small Area Plan took root in understanding the emerging rhythm of local businesses, neighborhood gathering places, artists, residents, and visitors moving between the city and the ocean.
At Rudee Park, hours of community conversations revealed not only what should be preserved, but what people hoped the park could become, shaping the vision that ultimately earned city-wide approval.
For the Virginia Beach 5/31 Memorial, inspiration came from the filtered light beneath the tree canopy, the gentle draw of the land toward the water, and the distant view of the city—an understanding that what already existed offered the most meaningful way to honor, remember, and heal.
Transformational urban planning is generally considered successful based on measurable and visible outcomes—ease of ingress, egress, and parking, diverse mix of land uses, land and building occupancy rates, dollars out and dollars in, but most of all, people showing up. Yet, planning is not transactional. Its success requires wading slowing into the water, treading there for a bit in observation, then diving deep with local partners to develop an understanding of the people and places that a plan is meant to serve.
People choose to stay longer, live nearby, and engage with well-conceived public spaces that are considerate of them and their varied backgrounds, goals, and objectives. They support active and healthy living, foster community resilience, and, in doing so, become dynamic economic engines.
Planning process:
Understanding place.
Seek out the stories and relationships that reveal its character. Observe and measure how people use and move through the space: why they come, where they gather, how long they stay, and why they leave. Understand, too, the economics of what happens at ground level—and how the quality of the public realm supports or limits it.
Envisioning what’s possible.
Use this deep understanding of a place’s character and functions as the foundation for imagining what comes next.
Creating an ambitious yet rooted plan.
Meaningful change depends on the thoughtful stewardship of people, process, and investment. Use temporary activations to test ideas, then translate what works into a renewed public space that stays true to its place.
Before we can imagine the best possibility for a place, we must truly see it first—to understand not only what is there, but why it matters. It is from this nuanced, human-centered knowing that an authentic, aspirational, and actionable vision emerges.
FAQ
1 | What makes a public space plan successful?
A successful plan responds to how a place is actually lived. It balances physical performance, economic viability, and the experiences of the people who use it—then translates that understanding into practical, achievable action.
2 | Why is community engagement essential to the planning process?
Community engagement reveals what plans and data alone cannot: the stories, relationships, habits, and memories that give a place its character. It helps identify what should be preserved, what needs to change, and what people hope a place can become.
3 | How do planners develop a meaningful understanding of place?
They listen, observe, and measure. This includes studying how people move through a place, where they gather, why they stay or leave, what happens economically at ground level, and which physical and emotional qualities matter most.
4 | How does a planning vision become reality?
Implementation begins by establishing priorities, testing ideas, aligning people and investment, and adapting as conditions become clearer. Thoughtful stewardship protects the vision while moving it through the complexities of approval, funding, design, and delivery.