The City of New Rochelle has a long and storied history as a home to arts and culture, with Thomas Paine, Carrie Chapman Catt, Norman Rockwell, Eddie Foy, and Frederick Remington just a few of the nationally-recognized artists who have lived in the city over the years. To better formalize this identity, CivicMoxie was hired to lead a planning effort to create a new arts and cultural district plan, with the help of Karl F. Seidman Consulting Services. The existing cultural institutions, organizations, and individual artists are spread throughout the city and include an active public library in the heart of downtown, the Council on the Arts that hosts ArtsFest each fall, and a host of other organizations including the New Rochelle Opera and the ballet.

CivicMoxie identified boundaries for the downtown district, conducted a survey of artists and creatives to determine the market demand for space, and suggested policies and urban design strategies to foster the arts and maintain cultural space. In the final plan, CivicMoxie included a variety of action kits for the City and other stakeholders related to maker space, placemaking, the creation and management of the arts district, and the space needs for a black box theater to assist in moving from planning to implementation. 

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Project type:

Arts and culture, community engagement, community revitalization, downtown / district plan, placemaking, urban design