Katy Scherrer
Landscape Architect
COurban Design Collective
What is the COurban Masterclass?
The COurban Masterclass brings together leaders from governmental and nonprofit organizations, as well as stakeholders from around the world for an immersive week of fieldwork, tours, lectures, presentations, and workshops. Participants study world-renowned public spaces and public life in Copenhagen, Denmark and Malmö, Sweden, providing inspiration and strategies to bring back home.
Why Copenhagen?
Copenhagen is a global leader in the study and cultivation of public life, which has been systematically tracked and studied there since the 1960s. This work has led to public-realm enhancements that support physical and mental health, economic vitality, and environmental sustainability. Masterclass participants will hear from professionals who have influenced Copenhagen’s public spaces and will learn how evidence-based practices and institutional decision making in the public realm helped the city become one of the world’s most livable urban environments.
Seeing Copenhagen’s infrastructure firsthand has had a life-changing impact on how I think about transportation options. The Masterclass was a comprehensive and immersive experience working with local leaders and experts. Because of it, I am convinced that we as city leaders can overcome any and all obstacles to create more connected and cohesive communities.
The 2019 Capitol Hill Urban Livability Masterclass
In August 2019, COurban hosted an Urban Livability Masterclass which brought together government and nonprofit leaders and stakeholders from the Capitol Hill neighborhood in Seattle, WA. The Masterclass was proposed to be an international forum for sharing knowledge and experiences about evidence-based planning and design strategies for the public realm. The class engaged in an immersive week of fieldwork, tours, lectures, presentations, and workshops to study world renowned public spaces and public life in Copenhagen, Denmark and Malmö, Sweden.
The primary objectives for this Masterclass were to:
- Inspire Capitol Hill stakeholders to imagine how the public realm could help achieve neighborhood goals
- to build relationships among stakeholders to work together on public realm improvements, and
- to develop a common understanding of evidence-based methodologies for evaluating and improving the public realm over time.
The delegation included representatives from Seattle Central College, Sound Transit, Seattle City Council, Seattle Department of Transportation, Washington State Department of Transportation, King County Council, Seattle University, Kaiser Permanente, Greater Seattle Business Association, Capitol Hill Housing Foundation.
The Masterclass participants heard from professionals that have influenced Copenhagen's public spaces and learned how evidence-based practices and institutional decision-making in the public realm helped the city become one of the world's most livable urban environments. Participants learned about the sustainability requirements Copenhagen set for municipal development and the city's collection and use of qualitative and quantitative data to continually improve their public realm.
The delegation were then able to bring these lessons home to Seattle to develop a shared vision for future investments and stewardship of Capitol Hill's public spaces.
Read more about the Masterclass in Denmark
Read our recent blog about the Capitol Hill Eco District and the Masterclass
Check out the two page flyer about the program below:
The 2018 Masterclasses
COurban hosted two masterclass programs during 2018. A masterclass for the Tacoma to Puyallup Connection in the Spring and a masterclass for the City and Port of Bellingham in the Summer. Read more about COurban's Masterclass
Tacoma to Puyallup Connection Masterclass
In August 2018, COurban hosted a masterclass for the Tacoma to Puyallup connection. For five days in Copenhagen and Malmö, they experienced guest lectures, talks and hosted bike tours with a focus on bicycle urbanism and open space connections. The objective of the Masterclass was for the delegation to learn from Danish elected officials and planning/transportation experts and experience the walking and biking networks to gather consensus about the envisioned bicycle and pedestrian connection between Tacoma, WA and Puyallup, WA.
The delegation consisted of 13 local leaders representing jurisdictions at local, regional and state level, including three mayors, Puyallup tribal council members, directors of two local non-profits and state and county representatives. The class included lectures from local, regional and state policymakers, visits to various governmental agencies, NGOs, and bicycle tours around the city of Copenhagen.
The goal of this Masterclass is to gather a cohort of decision makers committed to seeing this project come to fruition, who will develop a concrete plan to move this project into design and construction. The masterclass program also consisted of a pre-departure meeting in which all except two members of the cohort attended for some background and information as well as a short workshop to identify the key challenges and opportunities with the masterclass. In September 2018, there was a follow up meeting with the cohort in which COurban facilitated some activities in order to plan for the next steps of the project
Local mayors head to Copenhagen for help with bike trail design
KOMO News featured an article about the program in 2018
> Read MoreThe City and Port of Bellingham Masterclass
In May 2018, COurban hosted a masterclass for the city of Bellingham. For five days in Copenhagen and Malmö, they experienced guest lectures, talks and hosted bike tours with a focus on urban regeneration and connectivity to the waterfront. The class included lectures from Copenhagen policymakers and city staff from the City of Malmö, who are involved in current city initiatives and visits to various governmental agencies, NGOs, sustainable waterfront developments and public spaces.
The delegation consisted of seven city staff from the departments of planning, community and economic development and parks and recreation; two staff from The Port of Bellingham, and one representative from non-profit Downtown Bellingham Partnerships.
Read more about Bellingham and the areas they are working with for the Masterclass.
The goal of this Masterclass was to help the City of Bellingham move forward in their development of a new set of urban design guidelines for two waterfront areas. After the five-day class in which we examined best infrastructure practices of cities and neighborhoods that increase connectivity with a focus on vibrant and healthy downtowns and waterfronts, the outcome was a preliminary set of ‘design principles for urban livability’ relevant to the City of Bellingham.
The masterclass program also consisted of a follow up process with a presentation by COurban for the rest of the city staff in Bellingham in June, and a design charrette with community members and stakeholders in September.
The outcomes of the Masterclass program is 14 Design Principles for urban livability and placemaking strategies for the new Bellingham Waterfront District development.
For more information about our masterclass programs, please contact Katy Scherrer, katy@courban.co
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