PechaKucha: Re-Imagine Normal Street
The Pride Flag Monument
As a part of the Hillcrest Business Association’s endeavor to re-imagine Normal Street, a PechaKucha Night was held on May 12th, 2016. The event itself was held on the street, just outside of the Hillcrest Brewing Company. Guests were able to either sit inside of the bar and restaurant while listening to the main event, or they could sit outside in the seating provided around the stage. Other than the speakers, the event provided a range of different activities for guests to participate in. These activities ranged from helping paint a “paint by numbers” community mural, to grabbing a bite to eat at one of the several food trucks there.
The event was quite successful in its ability to let the public know just what the Hillcrest Business Association wants to do with Normal Street. This plan was highlighted in the talk given by Michael Brennan. Michael Brennan, a landscape architect, first got involved with changing Normal Street when he came up with the idea of installing a large scale pride flag on Normal Street. After seeing how the Hillcrest community has embraced this monument, he knew that more had to be done to the area in order to make it a better community space. Brennan’s plan, as of now, is to shut down a portion of the southbound side of Normal Street, just outside of the Hillcrest Brewing Company, and make the current northbound side into a two-way street. With the portion of Normal Street that will be shut down, Brennan wants to establish a beautiful greenway for the community to use. The idea behind this greenway community space is to express the ideals set forth in the colors of the pride flag. The plan that Brennan has come up with is absolutely stunning, and will encourage members of the community to spend their free time on Normal Street.
