Beginning in the summer/fall of 2020, Bike Fort Collins initiated a movement towards asphalt art and tactical urbanism with the express intent of creating safer streets. The artistic application of paint to pavement not only brings art to public spaces, but also humanizes our urban landscape. “Paint the Pavement” projects are part of the larger “Tactical Urbanism” movement that is taking root in towns and cities all over the country. Tactical urbanism is a community led approach to rethinking how we interact with the built environment, reshaping an urban landscape with low-cost, creative and innovative place making techniques. Using these practices has the power to humanize our urban landscape and create safer spaces for active transportation.
Our efforts brought some of the leading voices in the country to the table including Greg Raismen from the Oregon Bureau of Transportation, Mike Sule from Asheville on Bikes, and Ridhi D’Cruz of the Portland based, City Repair Project. Through a series of conversations and meetings with Bike Fort Collins and the City of Fort Collins we are excited to announce that the Paint the Pavement project launch is finally underway!
The City of Fort Collins has put together a formal process designed to aid community members in bringing asphalt art to their neighborhoods. Additionally, the city was recently awarded a $50K grant from the National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO) in the form of the Pandemic Response and Recovery Grant. These funds, termed the “Paint Pot”, may be used for historically underserved neighborhoods of Fort Collins that meet a multi-modal criteria determined by FC Moves. Bike Fort Collins is overjoyed to partner with the City of Fort Collins in this process as we take the lead in community engagement and capacity building. This means that Bike Fort Collins will be working within the community to identify “Paint Pot” locations – “through robust, equitable community engagement focusing on areas of the city comprised of predominately low-income community members. BFC will plan, coordinate, and implement engagement efforts that lead to the identification of up to five (5) project locations and at least five (5) community-based visual artists to design each project.”
Working with the City of Fort Collins as well as the NACTO team is a huge honor and we look forward to keeping you posted and updated on program progress.
I would love to see “art on public roads” in north FC. As you know, it is a low income area with an ugly US Highway cutting through it. Perhaps as a way to celebrate the completion of the Vine and LeMay overpass, from that intersection and along Vine to College; or in the intersection of College and Hibdon and Hickory, where there are two stop lights, and it creates a natural square, or along College, where there are 16 automotive related shops with a transportation theme, which might tie it all together. Be glad to help on this project.
Let’s paint the 1500 block of Whedbee!