Creative Santa Fe Announces: Bridging Communities

Local Voices for Local Impact A lecture by Scott Kratz, Director of the 11th Street Bridge Project

Tuesday, June 13th from 5:30-7:00 pm at the New Mexico History Museum

Scott Kratz, Director of the 11th Street Bridge Park, will present a conversation titled “Bridging Communities: Local Voices for Local Impact.” Scott will review concrete methods to engage community members in the process of developing equitable communities, and how anchor projects can create inclusive economic opportunities that connect, engage, and improve the lives of the residents of those areas.

Kratz will discuss the 11th Street Bridge Park, an innovative pedestrian bridge park that will span across the Anacostia River in Washington, DC. Scott will share insights into how his team is working to ensure that the thousands of residents who have helped shape this new civic space can continue to stay and thrive in their existing neighborhoods. Solutions include the creation of a Bridge Park Community Land Trust, home buyer clubs, tenant rights workshops, workforce training, and support of local small business enterprises.

Kratz is working with the community to use the base of an old freeway bridge to create a one of a kind civic space. The 11th Street Bridge Park will be Washington, D.C.’s first elevated public park. It will be located on the piers of the old 11th Street Bridge spanning the Anacostia River: a new venue for healthy recreation, environmental education, and the arts, the size of three football fields. The Bridge Park draws on an extensive community outreach and consultative process, anchored by more than 1,000 stakeholder meetings for design development and impact. Pre-construction began in 2016 and the park is expected to open by late 2019.

Scott Kratz has lived in Washington D.C. for 11 years, directing the 11th Street Bridge Park for the last four years. He has worked in the education field for over twenty years. He has worked at Kidspace, a children’s museum in Pasadena, California. He was the Associate Director of the Institute for the Study of the American West at the Autry National Center in Los Angeles, CA, planning and implementing programs including theater, film, music, festivals, family programs, lecture series, and academic symposia. Most recently, he was the Vice President for Education at the National Building Museum in Washington D.C.

Tuesday, June 13th from 5:30-7:00pm at the New Mexico History Museum Tickets are $5.00. Please call (505)288-3531​ ​to reserve a seat. This project is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts.

About Creative Santa Fe Creative Santa Fe strengthens Santa Fe’s economy by cultivating thought leadership and by spearheading collaborative projects at the intersections of art, culture, technology, education, and industry. Creative Santa Fe is committed to strengthening the creative economy of our city. It does so by identifying key issues, bringing together stakeholders, and catalyzing discussion, agreement, and action. Creative Santa Fe is joining communities and organizations throughout the world to adopt a new mindset for achieving large-scale change through collaboration and building public/private partnerships.