Town Papers – A Great Public Outreach ToolBack to News

As we are coming up to our tenth anniversary as Urban Community Partners, we have been reflecting on what we have learned over the course of our many projects and assignments. One lesson that stands out is the need for clear communication and organized public outreach during the entitlement and development process. One of the tools we have used to “get the message” out has been to publish a newsprint style (not glossy) newsletter often referred to as a Town Paper. Working closely with The Town Paper Publications (www.tndtownpapers.com), a firm owned and operated by Diane Dorney, we have created custom Town Papers to clearly articulate in text and pictures the true story and vision behind our projects.

Why is it important to reach out to the public early on in the development process? Most of our projects have involved new and/or traditional planning and design concepts that need to be clearly explained and often local newspaper articles don’t get it right. Many of our projects can be also defined as “Smart Growth” or Traditional Neighborhood Development” which can be more complex, and also more interesting, so we believe it is important to inform the communities in which we develop to help them understand the unique characteristics of the places we are creating. In addition to education, The Town Paper helps us to:

• Build community support & consensus
• Attract and direct interested buyers to the project website so they can sign up for future information
• Maintain a clear and consistent message about the project throughout the process
• Acknowledge the many stakeholders, public supporters, consultants and governmental agencies assisting with the project

To see some examples of our Town Papers please click on the link: Urban Community Partners – Experience which will take you to our experience page on our website. Many of our Town Papers are posted as PDF files at the bottom of our various projects which you can easily download.