Placemaking

Placemaking

Picture of brick plaza with students, a fountain, a clock tower, tree, and Portland Streetcar

Placemaking is how we transform a generic campus "space" into a place where you actually want to BE. It’s the difference between a sidewalk you rush through and a plaza where you stop to meet a friend. This includes how existing space is activated via events, installations, and more.

Picture of a brown and white corgi in front of fenced area that will become PSU's new dog park

The Placemakers Exchange

May 20th, 2026 
11:30 - 4:00 pm | Smith Ballroom

At the 2026 Placemakers Exchange, students, faculty, and community members will exchange ideas and walk away with actionable takeaways.

Vibrancy
How do we make campus feel alive after the sun goes down?

Comfort
How do we design better "third spaces" to rest and connect between classes?

Identity
How can we better reflect diverse cultures and the history of our community?

Ownership 
How do we make it easier for students to lead their own creative projects?

Event Schedule

Engagement & Vision
11:30 AM | Arrival & Poster Showcase
Gallery of PSU placemaking projects

12:00 PM | Opening
Welcome: Envision, Design. Create. Belong.

12:15 PM | Placemakers Roundtable
Candid dialogue featuring PSU & community leaders

Practical Application
1:00 PM | The Exchange - Breakouts
Facilitated, collaborative working sessions

2:30 PM | The Shareout
Rapid-fire synthesis from each of the
breakout groups

Field Study
3:00 PM | Placemaking Tours
Guided site visits to PSU’s existing & potential opportunity areas

4:00 PM | Celebrate with the Pups
Tours end at the new Dog Park for an Opening Celebration

Picture of a brown and white corgi in front of fenced area that will become PSU's new dog park
Picture of a brown and white corgi in front of fenced area that will become PSU's new dog park

EVENT RSVP
Join the conversation and help shape our campus. RSVP to reserve your spot at The Placemakers Exchange on May 20th!
 

CALL FOR POSTERS

POSTER DEADLINE: MAY 11, 2026

Students, faculty & staff are invited to create a simple poster (think science fair) with words, images, maps, or sketches that illustrate the placemaking work or project you have been involved in. Include the Challenge, the Solution, and Outcomes (the who, what, where, why, when). Posters should highlight the wins as well as the "well, that didn't work" moments. Geek out over real-world examples of how we’re reshaping our slice of the city.

A birds-eye view of conifer trees next to the shore of a reservoir.

POSTER SESSION SUBMITTAL CONSIDERATIONS

  • Progress over polish: Don’t worry about high-end design or professional renderings. We value grounded storytelling and raw ideas over a "perfect" finished product.
  • Need some help?: If you have a great project but aren't sure how to translate it into a poster, let us know! Our team is happy to collaborate with you to make sure your work is represented.
  • Poster boards and printing are provided. Just ask!

Students, faculty, staff, and the larger community are essential in the placemaking process at PSU! The intent of Placemaking at PSU is to empower people to become placemakers and work collaboratively and justly to create a vibrant and inclusive campus. Placemaking provides an opportunity for a living lab experience where the campus is the lab and student work influences the future development of the campus.

Retired urban planning professor Ellen Shoshkes taught PSU’s Public Space class for several years and partnered regularly with Campus Planning staff to get her students involved with placemaking projects on campus. Prof. Shoshkes focused her Fall 2019 Public Space class around one of PSU’s skybridges. Campus skybridges were identified in PSU’s 2019 Open Space Plan as an opportunity site for open space activation. The project was coined “Pie-in-the-Sky” and concluded with a “pop-up” event with free pie on the skybridge as a way to increase foot traffic and draw campus engagement with the class. Shoshkes’ students incorporated furniture, elements of interior design and wayfinding, along with a survey for feedback around future use of the space. 

Civil & Environmental Engineering (CEE) Capstone projects supervised by engineering instructor Evan Kristof have partnered with the Planning & Sustainability Office multiple times to study Montgomery Plaza. The first Capstone project was completed in March 2020 and resulted in the project team recommending  infrastructure improvements on the plaza. Beginning in January of 2025, a new group of CEE students has taken on Montgomery Plaza as their Capstone project. They are currently evaluating the next phase for the plaza, a curbless environment with onsite stormwater treatment, power, and potential outdoor covered space for winter gatherings. The students have also created a survey to engage their community and gather information around how people use the plaza and what they would like to see in the future. 

PSU art student Nick Pelster worked with the Planning & Sustainability Office to create a partnership between “The Courts Skatepark” and PSU. The Courts was a pilot skatepark located on PSU property just south of Shattuck Hall. The lot was in need of activation; Nick and the skate community started activating the space and eventually a partnership was born. Nick, now a graduate student in the Toulan School of Urban Studies and Planning, is currently working on a new site on campus for The Courts 2.0. 


Contact Us

If you are interested in partnering, supporting, or promoting Placemaking at PSU please contact the Planning & Sustainability Office!
 

Send us an email:  placemaking@pdx.edu