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Over the past few years, we have been on a journey to rediscover the small towns and cities in New England. As people who grew up in small towns, we had first-hand experience with public spaces that date back to a time when social life was very different than it is today. We have watched the decline of small towns, especially because we also worked actively in Main Street revitalization for more than 40 years. We understand that it is only through the tireless efforts of locals that downtowns can be brought back to life.

"How are small towns faring now?" we wondered. With most people staying nearer to home, we hoped to find out if small town life became more important and, if so, how could that new energy change their future?

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In the pre-automobile and pre-digital age, sidewalks in small towns organically connected to the main street and other community assets such as schools, libraries, parks, ballfields, stores, markets, houses of worship, cemeteries, surrounding neighborhoods, and other essential community institutions. They were well used. Spontaneous encounters were what brought people out every day. People wanted porches on their house so they could interact with their neighbors and keep an eye on children as they played, often in the street. They went to their local stores not only to shop, but also to socialize.

The biggest obstacle to vital community life are auto-dominated streets and passive public places, including most parks and public buildings in the towns we visited. These are trends that speak to a broader pattern in many communities across North America. To make matters worse, the roads in most towns we looked at had been widened, along with the intersections.

A waterfront community with a long history, Camden is a popular destination on the Maine Coast. Being a tourist town, as well as a second home and retirement community, means that there are a lot of people around who want to explore, and will gladly take up new reasons to walk, eat, shop, or hang out on a daily basis. The Camden waterfront, library, and park, as well as the Main Street and its connections mix together to create a steady flow of people and foot traffic. And of course, we couldn't forget the two ice cream stands that are such valuable local destinations.

The backbone of downtown Camden is its Main Street, with a nice balance of space for cars and people. Because of this thoughtful allocation of space, cars don't drive too quickly and sidewalks remain social places for people to shop and hang out.

Opportunities: With so much asphalt and space for vehicles in the center of the town, widening the sidewalks and extending the curbs on the side streets (especially where Bailey's Ice Cream stand is) would fundamentally shift the balance from a town defined by vehicles in its heart to one favoring social life and shopping in the center. Also, extending a widened sidewalk up both ends of Main Street could expand the perception of the downtown considerably. I used to go to the movies in the city hall growing up, when it was part of the downtown area.

Woodstock is a thriving small town in a very desirable part of Vermont. It has rolling hills and enticing terrain that attracts many owners of second homes and many retired families. The Rockefeller/Billings family was a major factor in preserving the character along with protecting large areas of farm land and open space, with an associated working farm and museum that serve as local attractions. Most of the buildings have been restored and are lived in or have stores catering to both tourists and locals.

Opportunities: Woodstock's main intersection could become the main square, connecting to a more active Green, could create a dynamic center of the community. This could be accomplished by narrowing the pavement and extending the curbs at both intersections, thus creating a center for the town. By activating the Green and connecting to the Woodstock Inn and adding other attractions along the Green, it would give an opportunity for extending the perception of the town and provide a greater opportunity for extending the area where people stroll.

Hanover is the only town we visited where we have seen an effort to compress the traffic and widen the sidewalks into the traffic and parking lanes. Activations on Hanover's streets show what is possible for Main Streets, even just through temporary experiments. The point is that even a few outdoor cafs change the perception of an overly large Main Street.

Opportunities: These experiments are a clear signal that sidewalks could be widened permanently. Existing retail/restaurants could extend onto the sidewalk from the buildings and the curb lane (former parking) could be for outdoor seating or even small pavilions and kiosks used as day stalls or new incubators for businesses. Once again, a Power of 10+ strategy could be a way to move forward on this, especially because the existing layout and distinct places in Hanover lend themselves to creating a strong downtown.

We were immediately taken by this small Vermont town. It has beautiful homes with porches, a small inn, a green, and some quirky, interesting places to stop and explore. It has all the qualities of a great small town, except the road going through it is like a highway. Slowing it down would add a lot of reasons to stop and explore.

This waterfront village is a real treasure. The stores in the downtown are places to shop, eat, and hang out, and the waterfront offers opportunities. But as of now, it is disconnected from the downtown even though it is one of the more interesting waterfronts along the Maine Coast. Nonetheless, Belfast is definitely worth a visit. It has a unique local feel, and people are very proud of their city, making you feel very welcome.

Like in so many other towns, the sidewalks in Belfast are too narrow. We found ourselves walking in the street rather than on the sidewalks, where it is difficult for even two people to walk together. Main Street is no exception to this unfortunate trend. This greatly limits the potential of the downtown area, especially because the road delivers you to an impressive waterfront. Just imagine if it were more easily accessed by foot!

In addition, Belfast's wonderful Saturday market is located too far away from the center of town or the waterfront. This challenge could be easily remedied: Any of the market's stalls could be in a consignment center with day stalls on the waterfront.

Opportunities: There is so much improvisation evident in this town, but it is repressed by big streets and narrow sidewalks. To get out of these limitations would pave the way for an enormous outbreak of creativity. The major intersections could be the first step: extending dramatically to create a series of "squares" leading down to the waterfront. Again, a Power of 10+ exercise could give a focus on ways to further activate the many assets this wonderful community has... In fact, we think it could be the "Power of 20!" The impact would be powerful.

Meanwhile, the Main Street in Bristol has shrunk in use over the years, partly as a result of road and intersection "improvements." Even after recently widening the sidewalks, Bristol's Main Street is overly wide, and its center auto-centric. Due in no small part to its size and design, the main intersection is a divider, not a connector. We know that intersections can make or break the social activity in a downtown area: So why do we continue to build them at this scale?

In addition, there is minimal connection from spaces like the Green into the neighborhoods. Meanwhile, the town green, while lightly used, is perceived as separate from the town. Creating a true center would be a game changer for Bristol.

Opportunities: When we see how one single catalytic intervention could transform what is already a very special community like Bristol, we can't hold back... Bristol could think about narrowing the main road, and could at the same time work to add a very walkable downtown. A starting point could be as simple as making way for bike lanes and clusters of shopping along both sides of the road. By reducing the speed and creating small hubs like these, you would fundamentally shift the perception of that local road. It all starts with seeing the opportunities for the existing center of town.

There is another story that struck us as significant: One with which many towns all over Nova Scotia and New England are grappling. Namely, that the "main intersection" in the center of Mahone Bay is a roundabout that dominates that part of the community.

The places around that main intersection often house important institutions worth supporting by creating a major (and less car-oriented) destination. In the case of Mahone Bay, paving the way for a significant destination at this end of town could also help to create a link along the bay to the restaurants and ice cream stand around the bend. This would also have a ripple effect in that it could expand the link between Mahone Bay and the water.

Opportunities: Despite the caveats above, safe walking conditions could be improved through some extensions of sidewalks in all directions at the intersection and some sort of indication of it being the center of town. Also, bringing the inside out of many of the buildings in the center could give it an identity, with activities "spilling out" to draw people in. The lakefront could also be improved for walking. Overall, Greenville is already a special place, but a little work on the edges could go a long way.

There are some very impressive qualities in Essex, with an historic inn, a small park leading down to the water, and a terrific museum at the end of the Connecticut River, but the main drawback is a wide road with barely walkable sidewalks.

The entranceway to Essex's Downtown is an enormous roundabout with very little going on to attract anyone except a few parking spaces and a few stores, one of which is nearly made invisible by too much planting. 2351a5e196