The New York Times / Joseph Berger, November 28, 2005

The Gowanus Canal often stinks and is almost always spotted with slicks of oil.  The streets alongside it are practically deserted, the silence broken by the rumble of concrete mixers and oil tankers or the screech of buzz saws. Graffiti abounds, and no one would use the word harmonious for the landscape, where ramshackle wood-frame and brick row houses are tucked higgledy-piggledy among factories, warehouses and two housing projects. 

Philadelphia City Paper / Jenna Portnoy, February 1, 2006

Painter Pamela Chapman arrived in Kensington armed with two dogs, a sleeping bag and a few words of advice from her new landlord. "As long as you have a car and don't walk around at night," you'll be fine, warned Michael Frechette, owner of the four-story Coffin Factory at Mascher and Jefferson streets. But within the first few days, Chapman wandered north and got lost in what Frechette calls "basically, the badlands."

Washington Post Writers Group / Neil Pierce , April 2, 2006

HOUSTON -- Imagine a bicycle copiously bedecked with flowers front and rear, ridden by a wiry, smiling 71-year old, sailing through a city neighborhood.

The National Assembly of Start Art Agencies, May 2006

NASAA has just released it's latest State Spotlight, a publication which features the myriad ways state arts agencies address current policy issues. This new edition, "Engaging Washington Communities Through the Arts," highlights the work of the Washington State Arts Commission in building arts participation and civic engagement throughout the state.

The Honolulu Adverstiser / Mary Vorsino, June 22, 2006

Over the past 40 years, a string of urban renewal programs have focused on Chinatown's 15 square city blocks of open-air markets and antique buildings.