I worked with the Rockford Housing Authority to develop an arts and creativity-based local economic development program based on the work I did for Peoples Housing.

This video, made by Rockford filmmaker Pablo Korona, describes the asset-based mentality for local economic development that is exemplified by this  arts and culture approach. Opportunity in the Making. from Our City, Our Story on Vimeo.

Douglass Park as a Community Arts Center. I was engaged by the Chicago Park District in 1996-1997 to transform the major regional park into a community cultural center. Over the year we did 75 meetings in and around the park and created a wide range of programming involving arts and civic partners. Thousands of people used the space and the program became a model for community cultural centers throughout Chicago.
See a one page summary->Douglass Park Summary

The Peoples Housing Community Arts Program. I was hired by Peoples Housing, a community development organization in north Rogers Park, Chicago, in 1993 to create an arts program. Over three years I built an innovative program that combined the arts, training and micro-enterprise. The program was recognized by the national office of the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) and was funded locally by The MacArthur and Community Trust Foundations. Download a PDF description of the work we did.

To listen to the tracks of this wonderful community creation, go to SoundCloud at https://soundcloud.com/civiclab/sets/peoples-housing-best-of-howard.