Last week we learned about the Building Active Communities Initiative from Erin Merchant (left), Abigail Lichliter (center) and Kim Skornogofski (right).

 

BACI is part of the “Imagine Great Falls” effort, which has reached out to community members to revitalize our home town. Using the Project for Public Spaces template, the initiative recognizes that great places to live appeal to our need for sociability, to be useful and active, to feel comfortable in our space and to have access to one another in the process. An example of a community activity that appeals to all of these needs is Farmers Market.

 

Like Get Fit Great Falls, BACI is finding ways to motivate people to get out and get active. They are experimenting with various activities, such as the “sidewalk checkers game” at Davidson Plaza during the Sidewalk Sale this summer. They’re upgrading crosswalks and lining up food trucks as a regular feature in the near future. They’re also exploring the advantages of using streets not just for cars but for people, like the walking mall on Last Chance Gulch in Helena, and redesigning parking lots for multiple uses.

 

Rotarians were given surveys to help the initiative get new ideas and feedback from the community. It's always nice to see groups who are working hard to make Great Falls an even greater place to live.