Urban Activators | Retail Pop Up

In partnership with the Illinois Institute of Technology, the Metropolitan Planning Council and the Bronzeville Retail Initiative, Civic Projects led the development of a series of prototypes for the temporary activation of vacant storefronts. Our approach was simple: create a set of portable elements that could easily be moved between vacant storefronts in a community.

Initiated in 2014, the first pop-up event, spanning two days, attracted more than 200 people from the neighborhood and around the city. Working closely with entrepreneurs, Civic Projects identified their needs and market-readiness prior to their participation in the event. The team developed graphics and programming alongside a curated selection of retailers. Although our direct involvement has ended, the project has been carried on by local participants, who have built on our approach to implement pop-ups every summer since 2014. Building on this work, Civic Projects has developed storefront and market activation for Chatham and Englewood.