During a global pandemic when millions of people rarely leave their homes, our public parks, plazas, trails, greenways, and even sidewalks have become critical havens. In cities large and small, these public spaces are sustaining people in ways we couldn’t have imagined a few months ago. The importance of a robust, connected, and nature-rich public realm — a true civic commons — is clearer than ever.

For decades, American leadership has failed to invest in our nation’s crumbling infrastructure. Now, with a prolonged health crisis battering our economy, the consequences of inaction are dire.

As bike lanes and cafes sprout on streets, marginalized residents wonder when their priorities will get attention.

The Riverline project intended to transform the former DL&W rail corridor into a 1.5-mile urban nature trail along the Buffalo River recently received national attention when it became part of the High Line Network.

As New York City’s COVID-19 numbers improve, more and more of the city is reopening. The High Line opens Thursday with ticketed entry. It’s one of the first big attractions to reopen in the city.

Metropolis catches up with the High Line Network, a consortium of North American reuse projects that has been sharing notes and best practices through the pandemic.

The Underline was always an ambitious concept, a $120 million 10-mile linear park that will weave through several municipalities, invigorating the space beneath the Metrorail.

I’ve heard the same refrain from both friends and strangers, over and over, ever since the pandemic hit: “COVID has upended life as I know it. But I’ve found peace along the Detroit Riverfront.”

A team of goats took on a very important assignment.

They have been deployed to Silo City to eliminate invasive mugworts.

With their unique digestive systems, they breakdown seeds and slow the regrowth of those invasive plants.

A group that has long promoted for a plan to convert an abandoned rail line into a shared-use nature trail just gained membership into a notable non-profit that could significantly boost their profile as they advocate for the infrastructure’s revitalization.