Residents of St. Paul, Minnesota, could very well see a mobile fleet of bike-powered hot tubs to cure the winter blues. Meanwhile, bus riders in southwest Detroit might find themselves waiting for their next ride at a “stoplet,” a bus stop decked out to have “the feel of an intimate city park.” And folks in Philadelphia, don’t resist when the enticing smell of food draws you to a marketplace for immigrant cuisine in Mifflin Square Park.
These are just a handful of the 144 finalists for the Knight Foundation’s third, and possibly last, Knight Cities Challenges. The foundation wanted the best ideas from urban thinkers across the U.S. for fostering community engagement, making use of public space, revitalizing neighborhoods—anything that would improve life in cities. The fleet of hot tubs, or “hot pots,” for example, is a public health project aimed at maintaining the residents’ well-being during the bleak winters of the upper midwest. Alongside programs to connect neighbors through workshops and outdoor events, the project could be a low-cost remedy to Seasonal Affective Disorder.
[For more of this story, written by Linda Poon, go to http://www.citylab.com/tech/20...ce-diversity/513392/]
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