The CSPM System

The CSPM System is the complete and comprehensive crowdsourced placemaking program, requiring a minimum of six months to develop an enthusiastic community of support for a compelling and viable vision. The system is also designed to scale with the needs of the client. The CSPM Platform is the hosted crowdsourced placemaking website that is required for the CSPM System.

Benefits of the CSPM System

Create political capital
By involving the community in a grassroots manner from the outset, municipalities and the private sector benefit by garnering public input and support for transformative redevelopments that are market tested and economically sustainable. It creates an environment that helps build political will, while ensuring support for locally-owned, entrepreneurial businesses to succeed.

Create financial capital
The crowdsourced placemaking program provides a platform for crowdfunding the kinds of places and destinations that are most desired by the community. From presidential campaigns to starting small businesses, crowdfunding has rapidly become the norm for large numbers of people contributing small sums of money to a common cause, and it all starts with establishing an identifiable community with a common cause. That’s the mission of crowdsourced placemaking.

Create social capital
Crowdsourced placemaking can be viewed as a combination of public engagement, market development, publicity and marketing. In terms of public engagement, everyone is invited to participate, and more importantly, continuously participate with their individual contributions cumulatively recorded. In terms of market development, we’re not simply building a community of supporters, but a community of enthusiastic customers and investors. Publicity wise, it is the community that provides the word of mouth publicity for the projects, and in terms of marketing, people will campaign on behalf of the project because it furthers their own shared values. Everyone is entitled to participate with agreement of the triple bottom line.

The CSPM Group will train and provide support to a local staff. Its primary focus will be to prepare a local representative or team to manage the crowdsourced placemaking program.

The CSPM System Phases

Phase One: Planning the Crowdsourced Placemaking System

A. Define triple-bottom-line vision in market terms

Define sponsor’s values, principles, needs, vision and goals for project.

What is a sponsor? The sponsor is the entity that finances and manages the crowdsourced placemaking system.

Define the triple-bottom-line (economical, social, environmental benefitting) vision of the sponsor. See Appendix for example of the Sponsor’s triple-bottom-line statement in Bristol.
Identify the community’s stakeholders that best represent the diversity of the population in terms of social, economic and environmental interests, and define their values, principles, needs, vision and goals.

What is a stakeholder? A stakeholder represents a sizable constituency or degree of influence in the community, such as a business association, a significant property holder, a government entity, or a community organization.

Define a collective triple-bottom-line vision for the stakeholders.
Merge the triple-bottom-line visions of the sponsor and stakeholders into a consensus triple-bottom-line vision. See Appendix for example of consensus triple-bottom-line statement in Bristol.
Produce crowdsourced placemaking agreement that sponsor will fundamentally involve the stakeholders in the development project in exchange for the ‘beta community’ establishing a viable market for the Sponsor. See Appendix for example of crowdsourced placemaking agreement in Bristol.

B. Define key market-driven product decisions in investment terms

Determine which placemaking/development decisions will be made based on market surveys/preferences/demand and present them transparently to the public. These need to be decisions that are significant enough to secure participation by the community, and viable enough for the Sponsor to consider implementing. These are largely carried out via campaigns with goals and deadlines – see public amenity, retail and downtown living campaign examples in Appendix.

Determine campaigns that will most effectively develop ‘long tail’ communities of support and investment. See public amenity, retail and downtown living campaign examples in Appendix.
Determine individual recognition system for top contributors. See Appendix for Individual Recognition System example for Huntington Station.
Determine metrics and schedule for success, such as number of Likes for implementable ideas, Likes overall, member registrations, and identifying clearly defined products based on market demand. See examples below.

C. Hire Community Liaison

This is the single-most important decision in the crowdsourced placemaking process, as the community liaison represents the sponsor and the community simultaneously. The liaison must be someone who is proficient in social media, community outreach and digitial communications, and is motivated in working collaboratively as a team,. See Appendix for Community Liaison Hiring Guidelines.

D. Develop Launch Team

Establish a launch team consisting of a core community of supporters that will not only support the project but also help identify and build relations with people that have the potential to be champions (see definition of a champion below).
Host event to introduce the sponsor, stakeholders, core supporters and potential champions to one another.

What is a champion? Champions are the top contributors each month as identified via the individual recognition system. These are people who contribute significantly to supporting a compelling triple-bottom-line placemaking vision for the community; provide their time and/or resources to support the implementation of that vision; show up to events in person on a regular basis; are willing to enthusiastically collaborate with a diversity of people; are often (but not always) associated with public interest and nonprofit causes that represent many residents; want to see positive change sooner than later; and actively campaign to make their shared priorities a reality. A person can become officially recognized as a champion by either being a top contributor each month, and/or committing to championing an idea by campaigning vigorously for it, investing in it, speaking in public on behalf of it.

E. Launch pre-branded crowdsourced placemaking website

Launch informational website with a standard “Crowdsource ‘Project Name’” URL, such as ‘crowdsourcehuntington.com’ until the launch team can agree to a name.

Phase Two: Launching the System; Seeding an Enthusiastic Community of Supporters

A. Launch initial campaign

Utilize the crowdsourced placemaking platform to establish a market for the chosen initial campaign, whether it’s for public amenities, retail or downtown living, based on political and market situations.
Initiate recognition system for individual and community achievements. For community achievement, see previosly posted charts in ‘Determine metrics and schedule for success’ from Strategy and Implementation: Phase One.)

B. Begin developing launch team into a champions team and ‘long tail’ community.

The sponsor, the community liaison and the CSPM Group representative, collectively known as the cspm management team,

What is the ‘long tail’? The Long Tail is the realization that the sum of many small markets is worth as much, if not more, than a few large markets. In retail, it represents the products that were once considered fringe, underground or independent and now collectively make up a market that exceeds the bestsellers and blockbusters typically provided by the few. It’s about the economics of abundance—what happens when the bottlenecks that stand between supply and demand in our culture start to disappear and everything becomes available to everyone. In real estate development, it represents the vast majority of citizens that collectively have significantly more investment capital and influence than the few large-scale investors that typically make the majority of real estate decisions in that community.

C. Establish initial community of support, the first 100 members

Grow the community to reach the first 100 members via the campaign, recognition system, educational videos, public meetings, happy hour, meetup, newsletters and outreach, especially to stakeholder organizations.

Phase Three: Growing an Enthusiastic Community of Supporters as a Viable Market

A. Launch successive series of campaigns

Public amenity, retail, downtown living campaigns are launched in strategic order, based on what is politically viable and financially necessary. See public amenity, retail and downtown living campaign examples in Appendix.
Provide external and internal campaign metrics to ensure cspm team and the long tail community are equally motivated and committed.
Announce winners.

B. Conduct feasibility studies

Complete feasibility studies promptly, which can be initiated before the campaign ends based on tracking. The sooner these are completed the more trust the community will have in the process.
Analyze feasibility studies of the ideas resulting from campaigns and determine implementation strategy. The commitment to implement the financially viable ideas is directly proportional to the crowd’s commitment to invest in the sponsor’s overall development.

C: Business mobs

Monthly crowd-supported events at local businesses based on crowd-supported ideas.
Crowd-supported grand opening days for new businesses associated with the process.

D. Grow community to target percentage of the effective/influential population

This is a large enough number to be considered a viable market. Example, 3% is significant in Bristol, a small city of 61,000 in Connecticut (~2000 members). In Huntington Station, located within the New York metropolitan area, the target membership is 10% of of the Huntington Station population of 29,000 (~3000 members), or equivalent to 1.5 % of the Town of Huntington (200,000).

Phase Four A (Private Sector): Developing an Enthusiastic Community of Endorsers

A. Secure minimum number of Letters of Intent

Secure non-binding letters of intent (LOI) from potential residential and commercial tenants to provide evidence of market interest to investors and lenders.
Establish social networks among those who sign LOIs in order to establish a sense of community among the committed, motivating its members to recruit others.

B. Crowdsource loyal customer bases for existing and new local businesses

Crowdsource opening day communities of loyal customers for both existing businesses and any isolated new businesses opening in the immediate area that supports the overall vision even if they aren’t directly associated with the Sponsor. Utilize crowdfunding when appropriate.
Establish business mobs to ensure business continues to thrive, using crowdfunding when appropriate, developing the framework for recurring promotional events usually afforded by business alliances and main street programs.

C. Crowdsource tenant communities for small-scale housing developments

Crowdsource tenant communities for small-scale developers of isolated new housing developments in the immediate area that supports the overall vision even if they aren’t directly associated with the Sponsor.

Phase Four B (Public Sector): Developing an Enthusiastic Community of Endorsers

A. Identify potential developers for both residential and commercial development

Provide potential developers with evidence of market demand and investment, with a commitment to assist developers in securing the market they need to in turn secure financing.
Issue RFPs or RFQs to formalize the development process.

B. Assist developers in securing minimum number of Letters of Intent

Assist developers in securing non-binding letters of intent (LOI) from potential residential and commercial tenants through strategic access to the crowdsourced placemaking community.
Establish social networks among those who sign LOIs across all developers in order to establish a sense of community among the committed, motivating its members to recruit others.

C. Crowdsource loyal customer bases for existing and new local businesses

Crowdsource opening day communities of loyal customers for both existing businesses and any isolated new businesses opening in the immediate area that supports the overall vision even if they aren’t directly associated with the Sponsor. Utilize crowdfunding when appropriate.
Establish business mobs to ensure business continues to thrive, using crowdfunding when appropriate, developing the framework for recurring promotional events usually afforded by business alliances and main street programs.

D. Crowdsource tenant communities for small-scale housing developments

Assist developers in crowdsourcing tenant communities for small-scale developers of isolated new housing developments in the immediate area that supports the overall vision via stratic access to crowdsourced placemaking community.

Phase Five A (Private Sector): Crowdsource Investors for Actual Development

A. Crowdsource minimum number of deposits

Achieve target number of deposits from prospective buyers, leasers of both residential and commercial that are required for vertical developer to secure financing.
Establish an incentive system for the crowd in association with sponsor + financial sponsor of specific real estate developments to crowdsource commitments with deposits from potential buyers, renters and leasees.

B. Crowdsource loyal customer bases for sponsor/partner retail tenants

Crowdsource opening day communities of loyal customers for new businesses opening in financially-sponsored developments (sponsor + financial partner). The more open to crowdsourcing that the new business owners are, the more likely the they’ll have the crowd’s commitment to make them financially successful. Utilize crowdfunding when appropriate.
Establish a business alliance that allows the business owners to work with the crowd to host recurring events (ie Third Thursdays, holiday events, festivals) that promote the businesses as a collective destination.

C. Crowdsource tenant community for sponsor/partner new residential development

Crowdsource tenant communities for new large-scale residential development, ensuring all units are rented or sold. The more features and services are opened to being crowdsourced (i.e. mass customized), the more likely the units will be absorbed.
Establish a tenant community (i.e. homeowners association) that allows tenants to crowdsource, or make collective decisions on management, amenities and services in conjunction with the larger crowdsourced placemaking community.

Phase Five B (Public Sector): Crowdsource Investors for Actual Development

A. Crowdsource minimum number of deposits

Assist developers in achieving target number of deposits from prospective buyers, leasers of both residential and commercial that are required for vertical developer to secure financing through strategic access of crowdsourced placemaking community.
Establish an incentive system for the crowd in association with developers to crowdsource commitments with deposits from potential buyers, renters and leasees.

B. Crowdsource loyal customer bases for sponsor/partner retail tenants

Crowdsource opening day communities of loyal customers for new businesses opening in large-scale developments. The more open to crowdsourcing that the new business owners are, the more likely the they’ll have the crowd’s commitment to make them financially successful. Utilize crowdfunding when appropriate.
Establish a business alliance that allows the business owners to work with the crowd to host recurring events (ie Third Thursdays, holiday events, festivals) that promote the businesses as a collective destination.

C. Crowdsource tenant community for sponsor/partner new residential development

Assist developers in crowdsourcing tenant communities for new large-scale residential development, ensuring all units are rented or sold. The more features and services are opened to being crowdsourced (i.e. mass customized), the more likely the units will be absorbed.
Assist developers in establishing a tenant community (i.e. homeowners association) that allows tenants to crowdsource, or make collective decisions on management, amenities and services in conjunction with the larger crowdsourced placemaking community.

Optional Phase Six: Maintaining and Growing Investment

A. Residential

Establish homeowners association utilizing crowdsourced placemaking to plan and develop improvements and new amenities, services.

B. Commercial

Establish a downtown business association with shared investments among its members to market and manage the businesses as a collective.

C. Public Amenities

Establish an entity to manage the planning and management of downtown events utilizing existing crowdsourced placemaking community.
Utilize crowdsourced placemaking system and community for planning public amenity improvements and new public amenities.

Crowdsourced Placemaking Tools

Communications

Daily: Twitter, Facebook Page
Weekly: Newsletters, points, membership, campaign goals
Monthly: 1) Sponsoring developer project updates as it relates to crowdsourced placemaking. These become press releases. 2) Crowdsourced placemaking recaps for the month.

Face-to-Face Community Building/Market Development

Monthly meetups
Monthly happy hours
Presentations at community events and to stakeholder organizations (keep in mind that once crowdsourced placemaking is in the flow, it is no longer viewed as a private sector effort, but as a community campaign for positive change.)

Offline Documentation of Demand and Participation

Paper idea ballots (see Appendix for example)
Paper idea submission forms
Paper member registration forms

Online Platforms

Key Supporters/Volunteers: Facebook, Basecamp. Key supporters and champions will use Facebook Groups to carry on discussions. For task management, they’ll use a popular project management system known as Basecamp that manages tasks and associated discussions efficiently.
The Crowd/Long Tail/All Members: Facebook, website forums, comments, idea discussion threads. Much of the ongoing discussion will gravitate to shared interest discussion groups on Facebook – see Appendix: Facebook Discussion Group.

Schedule Example

Months One and Two
Tasks
• Complete Phase 1: Vision and Market-Driven Decisions.
• Begin full implementation of Updates.
Milestones
• Beta community stakeholders approve the name of their beta community group.
• Beta community stakeholders join the crowdsourced placemaking website.
• First happy hour.
Deliverables
• Vision and mission statements.
• Initial core group of supporters.

Months Two to Four
Tasks
• Begin Phase 2.
• Initiate Liking/voting of ideas.
Milestones
• Initial Launch Team established, precursor to Champions (ie leadership) team.
• Initial campaigns identified and initiated.
• Champions and support communities identified for most popular development ideas.
• First monthly meetup.
Deliverables
• Growing group of supporters with viral structure.

Months Five to Six
Tasks
• Begin Phase 3.
Milestones
• Completed campaigns.
• Champions team established.
• Campaigns established to support existing local businesses and proposed local businesses.
Deliverables
• Market developed base for residential and commercial development.
• Market product specifications (e.g. price points, configurations, amenities) for developers.

Beyond the First Six Months
Tasks
• Phases 4 and 5, depending on permits and financial support.
Milestones
• Fully leased/sold residential and commercial buildings.
• Financially sustainable retail businesses opened.
Deliverables
• Waiting list of buyers/renters list for downtown residental units for developers.
• Signed leases for commercial spaces.

Appendix

Triple-Bottom-Line Statement by Sponsor (Renaissance Downtowns) in Bristol

Renaissance Downtowns’ efforts are rooted in the principles of smart growth, sustainability and locally-based economic development, using a comprehensive and holistic program to invest in the downtown with a goal of creating a vibrant, walkable destination neighborhood in collaboration with the community.

This approach represents a triple-bottom-line philosophy of social, economic and environmental sustainability, resulting in a revitalized downtown Hempstead that is once again a regional magnet for economic and cultural prosperity.

In order to achieve these goals, we plan on incorporating Smart Growth principles as defined by the Smart Growth Network, the Urban Land Institute, the Charter for the New Urbanism; green standards as defined by the U.S. Green Building Council; and local economic development principles as defined by Cooltown Studios:

– Principles of Smart Growth
– The Charter for the New Urbanism
– U.S. Green Building Council LEED-ND green neighborhood design guidelines
– Cooltown Studios local economic development principles

Triple bottom line questions to ask:

Economic/Profit
Is the project financially viable to investors

Social/People
Are construction jobs being sourced locally whenever feasible
Is housing being developed at prices that the local residents either can afford or are in favor of
Are enough job-creating businesses being attracted
Are placemaking principles (ie CNU Charter) being met to ensure a high quality of life
Are there enough well-supported public places to encourage a sense of community
Does the community feel they have a meaningful role in the development of the project
Are there enough places accommodating the growing market that wants to live car free

Environmental/Planet
Are LEED-ND and LEED building certifications being met
Are there enough places accommodating the growing market that wants to live car free

Consensus Triple-Bottom-Line Vision Statement in Bristol

The mission of Bristol Rising is to represent the future downtown community of Bristol, Connecticut throughout its revitalization. Our goal is to create a vibrant destination that is economically, socially and environmentally beneficial to our culture and economy, where thousands of members work together in making it the best place in the country to be!

Bristol Rising is a community where you can:
1. Collaborate with others to revitalize Bristol’s downtown.
2. Submit, vote, and campaign for the ideas you like.
3. Participate in monthly meetups.
4. Discuss important topics in our forums.
5. Learn about “crowdsourced placemaking” and how it will revitalize our downtown.

This is where interested community members contribute to the revitalization of downtown Bristol, according to an agreed upon Triple-Bottom-Line Statement and Crowdsourcing Agreement that establishes whatever ideas are proposed must be socially, economically and environmentally sustainable.

We should be proud, as this innovative and inclusive crowdsourced placemaking effort is the first of its kind in the nation. Big dreams need a bold approach, and our community will play an integral role in the creation of an environment where we can live, work, shop, play, learn – or all of the above!

The goal is for Bristol Rising to establish itself as a forward-thinking community that is large enough in size (short-term goal in the hundreds of members, long-term goal in the thousands) to be a valued partner in making major decisions regarding significant downtown investments. See answers to the most frequently asked questions on the project here. And click here to find out how you can act now!

Crowdsourced Placemaking Agreement in Bristol

Through a crowdsourced placemaking program, Renaissance Downtowns will involve the future residents, tenants and committed patrons of Bristol Rising to provide you with a triple-bottom-line downtown destination upholding the residential, commercial and cultural values you desire, in exchange for your providing a commitment to Renaissance Downtowns to support the project if those values are indeed significantly invested in and met.

This agreement serves to:
– Provide predictability in managing expectations each group has of the other, including definition of roles and responsibilities.
– Avoid false expectations in regard to what will eventually be built.

Both parties agree to:
– Use the project’s Triple-Bottom-Line Statement as a set of underlying principles for the development.
– Support a realistic implementable plan that is constructible and sellable, based on objective economic analysis to confirm its financial viability. This must satisfy the economic/financial bottom line (of the triple bottom line) for Renaissance Downtowns, the City, the development’s future citizens and the Bristol Community at large.
– Agree to collaborate diplomatically, consciously and respectfully with each others’ best interests in mind. This means that ideas will inevitably be implemented that are not supported by all, but as long as they both fit within the spirit of the triple-bottom-line principles and are financially viable, these should not be grounds for withdrawing overall support.
– Work with the committees to execute the actionable ideas of the crowd.

Renaissance Downtowns will provide Bristol Rising with:
– Community building, discussion, and decision-making tools, such as a social network website and an open market survey website.
– Transparent updates of the development progress at a frequency that satisfies the majority of the beta community. Renaissance must maintain the option of retaining sensitive financial information.
– Assistance with managing and educating the beta community on the process of collaborative teamwork and benchmark planning and design.

Bristol Rising will provide Renaissance Downtowns with:
– A large enough identifiable market community of potential tenants, buyers and committed patrons from which Renaissance Downtowns can use to make development decisions and secure financing.
– Transparent updates of the beta community’s progress at a frequency that satisfies Renaissance Downtowns.
– Outspoken leaders and followers that will campaign and openly support the project, especially at time of need.

The key to the success of this partnership is that both sides realize it is a symbiotic relationship between two parties with mutual interests. We must work together as a team, and trust that we will resolve differences enthusiastically and without judgement. The larger the beta community grows, the greater its leaders need to ensure that the community is working as a cohesive unit to make this an entirely enjoyable experience for themselves, the City, and the Renaissance Downtowns team.

Public Amenities Campaign in Bristol (Chart) / Huntington Station (Description)

What kinds of public places, amenities and destinations would you like to see in a vibrant downtown?

Source the Station members are shaping the future of public places and amenities in Huntington Station through our Public Destinations Campaign! Members ‘Like’ (upvote) your their favorite public place and amenity ideas, submitting their own positive, inspiring ideas as well. Once we identify the top five ideas with at least 75 Likes (to prove there’s actually a market for them), Renaissance Downtowns will invest in feasibility studies for their implementation, then look to include them in the master plan.

How to participate:

1. Like/vote for public place and amenity ideas here.
2. Submit ideas here or via the big red ‘Submit an Idea’ button on the home page or Ideas page. You can also submit an idea in person at the Source the Station office (see address at bottom left of this site) or by emailing Erika at erika@sourcethestation.com.

The rules are as follows:

Public place & amenity ideas need at least 75 Likes to qualify.
Public place ideas include plazas, main streets, parks and destinations.
Public amenity ideas include community, entertainment and recreational facilities.
The more informative the description the better.
These descriptions may be updated as people provide comments that further develop the idea. Your original description will be preserved, and you can edit it at any time.
Deadline: November 15, 2012

New Retail Campaign in Huntington Station

What kinds of local independent restaurants and shops would you like to see in a vibrant downtown?

Source the Station members are shaping the future of retail in Huntington Station through our New Retail Campaign! Members ‘Like’ (upvote) your their favorite five local business ideas, submitting their own positive, inspiring ideas as well. Once we identify the top five indie storefront suggestions, with at least 50 Likes (to prove there’s actually a market for them!), Renaissance Downtowns will invest in feasibility studies for their implementation, then actively begin recruiting business owners to make it a reality!

How to participate:

Like/vote for local business ideas here.
Submit ideas here or via the big red ‘Submit an Idea’ button on the home page or Ideas page. You can also submit an idea in person at the Source the Station office (see address at bottom left of this site) or by emailing Erika at erika@sourcethestation.com.

The rules are as follows:

Business ideas need at least 50 Likes to qualify.
Business ideas should be storefront retail businesses, like restaurants and shops.
Business ideas should not be chains or franchises.
The more informative the description the better.
These descriptions may be updated as people provide comments that further develop the idea. Your original description will be preserved, and you can edit it at any time.
Deadline: October 31, 2012

Downtown Living Campaign in Bristol

If this downtown vision appeals to you, it’s time to crowdsource a living downtown in Bristol! We’ve posted eight residential types for you to select from so you can let us know what kind of homes you’d like to live in downtown! You can learn more in this Downtown Living 400 Campaign explanation video.

Below is a small video peek of the ‘feel’ for what you might expect in a revitalized Downtown Bristol! Please note this was created before we crowdsourced our beloved piazza!

Why a downtown living campaign?
If there’s no evidence of a market for new residences in the downtown, residential developers won’t be able to secure financing. That’s where you all come in! We need to build an identifiable community of interest in downtown living, starting with reaching a cumulative total of 400 Likes for the eight residential types, which you can start Liking here. From that community of 400, we’ll then be able to establish the Bristol Rising New Downtown Founding 50 (or Founding 50 for short), a community of 50 people willing to make history by being the first to sign a pre-lease for a home in the second coming of Bristol.

We’re calling this overall effort the Downtown Living 400 Campaign! In conjunction with the 400 Likes, you can get your name on the Downtown Living Priority List, a no-commitment way to get on the priority list for when housing does become available. Wouldn’t you want to get first crack at, say, renting a two-bedroom apartment overlooking the piazza? It’s also how we’ll be prioritizing those Founding 50.

A few rules and considerations!
– You can only ‘Like’ one residential type, so pick your favorite! (i.e. the one you’d want to move into)
– If you know someone who is in the market for downtown living, especially in the cool urban environment that downtown Bristol will become, refer them to register on the site and have them Like their favorite!
– If you are not interested in living downtown, but know someone who is, you can choose to sacrifice your Like and select the typology of choice for the person you know instead.
– There are wide price ranges and square footages attached to each typology. These are more discussion points than realities, as the fluctuations in the market and fluidity of construction costs can swing numbers at any given point.

What is the campaign strategy?
Different residential types and different prices mean different crowds, so it’s important to recognize that a range of strategies is needed. Younger folks tend to focus on smaller, more attainably-priced efficiencies or studios, or smaller two or three-bedrooms apartments to split the rent, and are often willing to be urban pioneers. People with families will be looking at larger units, and also tend to wait until a neighborhood is more established before moving in. Empty nesters may be seeking homes with more amenities and nicer features, and maybe more bedrooms for guests or working areas.

Either way, there is a national trend toward smaller homes and more fiscally responsible living – it’s good for individuals and it’s good for the economy, and we’ll be helping you ride that wave! Check out “Americans are moving on up to smaller, smarter homes”.

Are there incentives for referring people who register on this site and eventually lease?
We’re working on that and will announce something soon.

What’s the goal for reaching 400 Likes?
Midnight, March 30, 2012. Let’s do this!

Why are new homes noticeably more expensive than existing homes?

New construction has an associated cost that is often higher than the costs associated with existing multi-family product and hence must charge a higher rental rate. The average age of the housing stock in downtown is nearly a century old and even the newer existing product is in many cases 20+ years old.
New construction provides a host of amenities that older construction often does not including new finishes (ie. new wood floors & cabinets), newer and better crafted appliances (ie. dishwashers, fridges, stoves and washer and dryer in some cases), new HVAC for heating and cooling efficiency, better windows, and more functional and nicer bathrooms. These new amenities have an associated cost which need be offset by the rental rates.

Individual Recognition System from Source the Station

Here are our beloved Top Contributors each month since the first days of Source the Station! Learn more here about how you can be recognized!

September 2012
– Harry Burger: 145 pts (helped out at Unity Day parade, top site contributor, attended happy hour and meetup)
– Kimberly Hawkins: 80 pts (posted public destination idea, referred 3 members)
– Nancy Berg: 65 pts (top site contributor, submitted an idea)

July-August 2012
– Amanda Peppard: 120 pts (Attended two happy hours, a meetup, top site contributor)
– Betty Miller: 120 pts (Referred eight members, attended a meetup and happy hour)
– Nancy Berg: 120 pts (Submitted three ideas, attended a meetup and happy hour, top site contributor)

So many of us contribute significantly to making a difference, but are often unrecognized and even forgotten forever.

Not here at Source the Station!

We’re recognizing the top contributors each month, placing them on our Hall of Fame page.

We’ll even present each of the month’s top contributors with a small token of our appreciation.

So, how do we identify the top contributors each month? It’s based on earning points using the following criteria:

Referring new members to join this site (10 pts each)
Having a photo of yourself in your profile (see ‘My Profile’ at top of Home Page once you’re logged in) (10 pts)
Being one of the top online contributors (i.e. writing comments on ideas on this site, conversing on Facebook page) (25 pts)
Attending in-person Source the Station meetups (25 pts) and happy hours (15 pts)
Submitting an idea (15 pts)
Getting 50 “Likes” for an idea or comment you submitted on sourcethestation.com.(25 pts)
Having 100 “Likes” for your idea or comment on sourcethestation.com. (50 pts)
Completing special tasks pre-arranged with the liaisons (i.e. extra credit): (10 to 25 pts)
Host a Chat & Chew (you bring the friends, we bring the food) (100 pts)

Community Liaison Job Posting for Nashua

The primary role of the community liaison is to represent two entities and facilitate communication between the two. One entity is the local community of Nashua, especially community members that are committed to positive change. The other entity is the implementor of that change, which is Renaissance Downtowns. Renaissance is a progressive, triple-bottom-line (economically, environmentally, socially beneficial) real estate development firm. Renaissance is committed to developing pedestrian-oriented/walkable, green, attainably-priced places, with an emphasis on local businesses.

You will be the primary person facilitating the involvement of the community in a groundbreaking “crowdsourced placemaking” (http://visualizenashua.com/what-is-crowdsourced-placemaking) process, by helping to spark and empower people toward building community synergy. Primarily you will do this through our social networking website, through hosting events and meetups, and meeting with local stakeholders. Through our training you will learn to involve thousands of people who will provide the input that will help Renaissance attract forward-thinking investors into the local community and bring about a community-wide movement of positive change.

To learn more about this process please read
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/10/realestate/a-downtown-revival-with-online-roots-in-the-regionconnecticut.html – which is a story on a sister project in Bristol, CT, and bristolrising.com – the mature crowdsourced placemaking initiative in that city.

A Community Liaison has the following key responsibilities:

Builds strong working relationships with community stakeholders with a goal of working together.
Facilitates community meetings and events, including planning and evaluating.
Creates and sends out weekly newsletter updates, including informative graphics and charts.
Educates the larger community continuously on the crowdsourced placemaking benefits and process.
Represent both the voice of the crowd and the sponsoring developer, Renaissance Downtowns.
Communicates via Facebook and Twitter at least several times a week.
Administers online survey and social networking website.