About

We believe designing public spaces in collaboration with community members creates places where people connect, which results in better life and health outcomes.

What are Orange Places?

Orange Places are public spaces where people gather and connect. They are accessible, sensory, sociable, and inclusive. They are parks, libraries, residential streets, or business districts. They are designed by and for the people who use them. And they are always a work in progress. As a result, they are vibrant and uplifting.

What is the Orange Places Project?

The Orange Places Project seeks to support government agencies, organizations, and community members working to create functional, well-loved public spaces in their communities. While it hopes to inspire the development of Orange Places far and wide, it directly serves communities in northeast Minnesota and northwest Wisconsin as a community health initiative of Essentia Health.

Why the Orange Places Project?

Social connectiveness, community involvement, mental well-being…. Like other places, northeast Minnesota and northwest Wisconsin have seen indicators in these areas decline for years. While many factors contribute to these measures, our built environment is both a symptom and a cause of our issues. We believe designing public spaces in collaboration with community members creates places where people can connect, which results in better life and health outcomes.

How does the Orange Places Project work?

We hope our resources can inspire a change in design processes for every community. For communities in northeast Minnesota (Carlton, Pine, and southern St. Louis counties) and northwest Wisconsin (Douglas County), we want to work alongside stakeholders to transform neighborhood-serving public spaces into Orange Places. Essentia Health’s Community Health Department has staff with experience in group facilitation, public space design, fundraising, grant writing/management, and more. Our process usually includes three steps that are cycled continually: evaluation, engagement, and execution. But every community and every public space is different, so please reach out and start the conversation.