Reimagining the Civic Commons, Macon

CivicLex is part of Lexington’s delegation to Reimagining the Civic Commons (RCC), a network of civic leaders across the country that are innovating new and better ways to design, operate and manage public spaces in order to deliver social, economic and environmental benefits for their communities.

This week, our Executive Director, Richard Young, attended an RCC Studio in Macon, Georgia. Here are some of his reflections:

What an inspiring few days learning about Macon’s great work to elevate public space, economic development, and civic engagement!

Many parts of this week’s experiences were so meaningful. We got to visit what may be Georgia’s first National Park at the Ocmulgee Mounds and hear about how important these spaces are to the Muscogee, who were forced off the land through Federal policy in the early 19th Century. We also heard about all of the wonderful economic development work happening in downtown Macon, including the work by the Otis Redding Foundation.

I was particularly struck by the impressive work happening at Historic Macon, which is leveraging state and national tax policies to stabilize neighborhoods, develop new multi-family housing stock, and help ensure neighborhood residents can financially thrive. It’s quite a non-traditional approach for a historic preservation organization.