Who We Are

Steve Davies

Steve Davies is nationally acclaimed for his work on urban revitalization. As an advocate for more livable communities, his work has taken him across the world as a consultant, facilitator and speaker.

With close to 400 major projects on his resume, Steve is widely admired for his expertise in downtown urban design, transportation planning, and design of mixed-use development projects and public markets. His projects range from downtown master plans in major U.S. cities, to design improvements for streetscapes, central squares and transit malls.

In 1987, Steve helped found PPS' Public Market Collaborative, a program concerned with the preservation and improvement of public markets. Several years later, he co-founded the Transportation and Livable Communities Consortium. One of his latest accomplishments was the establishment of a unique program, supported by the Rockefeller Brothers Fund and the German Marshall Fund, to revitalize public spaces in historic town centers in the Czech Republic. Through these programs, Steve manages several multi-million dollar projects, from technical assistance, to research and educational outreach.

An accessible and inspiring speaker, Steve has introduced tens of thousands of professionals to the PPS placemaking process. Audiences include American Public Transporation Association, Institute for Transporation Engineers, New Jersey DOT, New York DOT, Caltrans, New Jersey Transit, and hundreds of professional and community groups across the country.

Steve has co-authored and written books and articles including 'Public Markets and Community Revitalization', "Managing Downtown Public Spaces" and "The Role of Transit in Creating Livable Metropolitan Communities".

Education

Williams College, Bachelor of Art in Art and Environmental Studies
University of California, Berkeley, Masters in Architecture

Awards & Honors

John K. Branner Traveling Fellowship in Architecture

Award Winner, National Endowment for the Arts Grant Recognition Program (West 46th Street Project)

Citation, Urban Design Newsletter Awards (Exxon Mini-Park Project)

Certificate of Merit, Municipal Art Society, New York City (Museum Mile Study)

Award Winner, National Endowment for the Arts Grant Recognition Program (Museum Mile Study)

Award Winner, International Downtown Executives Association Award, 1983 (Hartford Downtown Council/PPS Hartford Management program)

Award Winner, Presidential Design Jury, Federal Design Achievement Award, 1984, administered by the National Endowment for the Arts (H.U.D. project on downtown improvements in seven cities)

Publications

"The Role of Transit in Creating Livable Metropolitan Communities," Transportation Research Board, 1996

"Public Markets and Community Revitalization," Urban Land Institute and Project for Public Spaces, Inc., 1995

"The Effects of Environmental Design on the Amount and Type of Bicycling and Walking," Federal Highway Administration, 1993

"Managing Downtown Public Spaces," American Planning Association, 1984

"Designing Effective Pedestrian Improvements in Business Districts," American Planning Association, 1983

"What do People Do Downtown? -- How to Look at Mainstreet Activity," National Trust for Historic Preservation, 1981

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