At centennial square near Downtown West Palm Beach's intercoastal waterway, strangers sit and chat on colorful chairs and compare their art. Young parents push baby strollers alongside pet dogs. Others connect in person with each other in the outdoors over the sound of live music.
It's all a part of the free "Lets Vibe" pop-up gathering, which aims to build a self-sustaining outdoor community. West Palm Beach officials are hoping to draw more people to public spaces in downtown.
Hundreds of people have strolled through since the gathering started last November — put on by the tax-funded West Palm Beach Downtown Development Authority. The event is held the second Wednesday of every month through May.
Officials are "priming the pump to get people to come outdoors," said Sherryl Muriente, the DDA's Public Realm Director.
She told WLRN, she's seen "an increase in the use of public spaces" since the pandemic but more can be done to improve the culture of outdoor activities in the area that has seen its downtown population double in the last 5 years to 10,000 residents.
"It's not necessarily second nature for some reason in West Palm Beach to think that the park and the green areas are for you to be in," Muriente said. The outdoor heat was typically a common complaint.
"And so we want to get people in that headspace and then let them do it on their own."
Muriente uses a city design approach known as “placemaking,” which leverages art installations and live programming to make public areas more attractive for everyday people.
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Let's Vibe happens every second Wednesday of the month in plazas and pocket parks — renovated and repurposed outdoor spaces, like lots between downtown buildings.
"I think it [outdoor gatherings] prevents isolation," Mary Glazier told WLRN. She partnered with the DDA to bring old magazines and newspapers for a public collage workshop.
Glazier, founder of PopUpcycle Art Workshops, said the gathering is also an opportunity for quirky chance encounters. "If you didn’t have those interactions, there would be a lack of quality of life," she said.
The next Let's Vibe pop-up art gathering is Wednesday, February 14 (Valentine's Day) at the Watermark in West Palm Beach, followed by The Prado on March 13, Centennial Fountain on April 10, and Garden District Taproom on May 8.
"A lot of people don’t realize that some places are considered parks, which also have beautiful public art," said Nickie Hennevelt, founder of the Tiny Door project, where people paint and embellish pieces of wood the size of cell phones so they look like miniature doors.
Her DDA-sponsored tiny door workshop sat across from the collage workshop.
"It is a very beneficial thing for everyone and it's what everybody needs," she said.
IF YOU GO
Date: March 13 (every second Wednesday of every month through May)
Time: 5:30 - 8 p.m.
Location: The Prado, 600 South Dixie Highway #734 West Palm Beach, FL 33401
For more information, click here.
