Renowned parks expert Mitchell Silver will headline CIVIQ, the speaker series from the Chattanooga Design Studio. The event will take place from 5:30-7 p.m. on Nov. 10, at the Camp House, 806 East 12th St.
Silver will discuss the evolution of parks from the mid-19th century through the 21st centuries, bringing the critical role of contemporary parks and public space planning into focus.
“There’s no one better in the country to address how the confluence of public health, resilience and equity initiatives can result in a development of a successful modern-day public realm,” said Eric Myers, executive director of the Chattanooga Design Studio.
Silver serves as vice president of Urban Planning at McAdams, a land planning and civil engineering design company in Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina, and is former commissioner for the New York City Parks Department.
In his role at McAdams, Mitchell is responsible for providing advisory services in urban planning, land use, parks and public space planning with an emphasis on diversity, equity and inclusion.
An award-winning planner with more than 35 years of experience, Mitchell is one of the nation’s most celebrated urban thinkers. He was selected to Planetizen’s list of the 100 Most Influential Urbanists in the world. In addition, he has been honored as one of the top 100 City Innovators in the world by UBM Future Cities, and the Urban Times named him one of the top international thought leaders of the built environment.
In addition to his CIVIQ lecture, Silver will also take part in a panel discussion with Chattanooga Mayor Tim Kelly and Scott Martin, administrator for the city of Chattanooga’s Department of Parks and Outdoors, on Nov. 9 from 5-7 p.m. at Common House, 1517 Mitchell Ave.
CIVIQ was started in 2018 as “a quarterly event which introduces and humanizes national and international movements in urban design by showcasing visionary work being done by practitioners in other cities. More than a lecture, each event is intended to equip the city to think differently about challenges faced in our community.” All events are free and open to the public. More information may be found at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/civiq-with-mitch-silver-tickets-440562352857