Session 9 / Chicago Live Program: Rethinking the 20 Minute Neighborhood Through the Lens of Equity

Andre Brumfield
Principal - Global Director of Cities + Urban Design
Gensler, Chicago

COVID has forced us to revisit how we think about our urban environments, and how we can create a better balance for our cities and our neighborhoods. The Pandemic, coupled with Social Protests, Black Lives Matter, and the murders of George Floyd and Breoona Taylor have placed a spotlight on inequality in our urban communities.

The concept of the 20 minute neighborhood is nothing new. But it has not been talk about through the lens of equity, and what it means for neighborhood revitalization in our Black and Brown Communities. We must finetune our approach to urban design and planning, and revisit the professional principles that we abide by for neighborhood revitalization, while examining others that we need to rethink.

We now have a new opportunity and an obligation to rethink how we plan and design our urban environments—to narrow the gap between people and place, and make both more resilient and more equitable.