The Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC), the metropolitan planning organization serving five and a half million people residing in greater Philadelphia and southern New Jersey, has a lengthy, if sporadic, history of weaving arts and culture into its planning. Through its participation in the Culture and Community Network (CCN), DVRPC is working to shift from one-off initiatives toward a more intentional, sustained integration of arts and culture. With flexibility to focus its CCN-related work in Trenton, DVRPC has been experimenting with new ways to engage communities, test creative tools, and strengthen internal readiness.

DVRPC staff view the Culture and Community Network as a timely and strategic opportunity to rethink how planning connects with people. Rather than treating arts and culture as an add-on, they wanted to explore how creative approaches could make engagement more authentic, responsive, and community-driven. From public participation to active transportation, DVRPC’s team is experimenting with new ways to move beyond business-as-usual—and bring fresh perspectives into regional planning. “If we keep doing the same thing, we’ll get the same outcome,” said Transportation Planner Jen Farris.

Early arts and culture milestones

Over the past decade, DVRPC has explored how arts and culture can strengthen planning, moving from one-off initiatives to a more integrated approach:

• Exploring ideas: Foundational reports like Demographic Trends and Forecasts in the Philadelphia Region (2008) and Spirit of Place (2023) examined how shifting demographics, culture, and creativity can reshape communities and drive economic vitality.

• Showcasing best practices: In 2012, a Regional Community and Economic Forum featured Mural Arts Philadelphia and county-level projects, elevating arts and culture as essential to community and economic development.

• Testing in the field: Creative demonstrations such as The Expo: Experimental Pop-Ups (2018) and Getting to Green: Routes to Roots (2024) piloted artistic storytelling, interactive installations, and station art to promote safety, celebrate cultural heritage, and connect residents to green spaces.

Together, these efforts laid the groundwork for DVRPC’s current participation in the Culture and Community Network, where the agency is moving from experimental projects to a more intentional, consistent process of creativity across its planning practice.

Some of DVRPC’s current and ongoing efforts include:

• Trenton Partnerships: Collaborated with Artworks Trenton and a local cycling group, letting partners lead with their expertise. Feedback revealed frustration with temporary street murals, pushing DVRPC to consider and implement more durable, meaningful strategies they’ve been exploring in CCN.
• Creative Meeting Tools: Used scale models and matchbox cars to explain street design changes in Trenton—an approach described as joyful, silly, and effective at sparking conversation.
• Art in Planning Workshop: A new initiative, designed by Lillian Drake, Public Participation Planner, around ideas learned through CCN, to showcase staff creativity while inviting outside artists to connect with DVRPC and planning partners.
• Safe Streets for All Committee in Trenton: Jen is embedding creative engagement methods into this new body tasked with creating a public participation plan.

Critical challenges

Even with growing interest, DVRPC staff face barriers. Staff emphasized that while encouragement to pursue creative work is helpful, what they really need is clarity and organizational support to integrate arts into planning efforts. Many also noted the challenge of aligning creative practices with the defined scopes and timelines of existing projects, which can make experimentation feel risky or impractical. And even when past arts initiatives were successful, they often lacked the structures to sustain lessons learned and build momentum over time.

Despite these ongoing challenges, an internal survey recently conducted in connection with the team’s participation in CCN revealed strong potential for risk-taking and interest in trying new things, prompting an opportune moment for continued growth.

Lesson learned

Participation in the Culture and Community Network has helped DVRPC step back, reflect, and experiment with greater intention. The team has seen the value of planting seeds for future innovation, identifying both “easy wins” and longer-term shifts that can make creative approaches stick. They’ve also emphasized the importance of setting clear goals, documenting processes to build trust, and showcasing the arts and culture work already underway both to inspire internal support and to share lessons across the region.

Looking ahead

DVRPC is beginning to translate these lessons from CCN into organizational change. The team is preparing specific, fundable project ideas for inclusion in DVRPC’s FY2027 work program, ensuring arts and culture isn’t just a side project but embedded in the agency’s core activities.

Smart Growth America’s role as convener and facilitator has been essential in this journey. CCN has given DVRPC the space to reflect, connect with peer MPOs, and test new ideas. More than just inspiration, SGA’s support has helped DVRPC legitimize and boost its efforts internally, building the permission and structure needed to make creativity part of planning and engagement at every step.