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Damascus Placemaking Festival

damascus placemaking
A lively outdoor street festival with people exploring vendor booths under blue and green tents. The entrance is decorated with balloons and signs reading "Damascus" and "Placemaking."
People painting large boards on the ground outside a yellow brick building. Traffic cones and art supplies are scattered around.
People reading and adding sticky notes to a large display board outdoors. The board is covered with colorful notes, and a gas station can be seen in the background on a sunny day.
A lively outdoor event with people enjoying music and performances. Attendees sit on hay bales under yellow umbrellas, while a group of dancers performs.
People painting benches on a blue tarp outdoors. Orange traffic cones are placed around the area.

Montgomery Planning led a collaborative placemaking initiative to reimagine a segment of Main Street in Damascus by temporarily transforming the street into a vibrant and walkable public space. Over the course of six months, Montgomery Planning engaged the Damascus community in a hands-on design process to develop and test out temporary public space and streetscape improvements that brought to life their vision for Main Street.

The initiative culminated in a free, two-day community celebration and street festival on October 19-20, 2024, that brought together over 2,000 participants including Damascus residents, local businesses, visitors, and community organizations. During the event, Main Street came alive with joy, excitement, music, and appreciation for what the community believed reflected its identity.

The Damascus Placemaking Festival cultivated a shared vision for the future of Main Street that embraces the community’s small-town character while addressing the needs of the future.

After-action report

Thank you to all who supported and attended this successful event! Checkout the After-Action Report from our urban design consultant that summarizes the community feedback, key takeaways, and recommendations following the festival. View presentation slides from the final report to the Planning Board.

Download the After-Action Report
A woman in sunglasses speaks into a microphone on an outdoor stage. She stands between two yellow and green sculptures with cutout designs, surrounded by trees and musical instruments.
A smiling woman hands an item to another woman in front of a booth. A young girl with face paint stands nearby, holding a cup. Everyone appears to be enjoying the interaction outdoors.
A man in a gray t-shirt and cap plays an acoustic guitar while singing into a microphone outdoors. He stands in front of decorative cutouts and greenery. Sunglasses hang on his shirt as he performs.
A bustling outdoor market scene with people walking between stalls under colorful bunting. Tents line both sides of the street, displaying various goods. Trees with autumn leaves are visible under a clear blue sky.
A martial artist performs a high kick to break a board held by another person outdoors. People watch in the background, and a photographer captures the moment.
A man in a blue shirt and cap holds a yellow paper while speaking into a microphone on an outdoor stage. A young girl stands beside him, partially hidden. A guitar rests on the stage nearby, with decorative panels and greenery in the background.
A man lifts a smiling toddler into the air at an outdoor festival. Colorful tents and people are in the background. Tables with seated adults and children are in the foreground, creating a lively family-friendly atmosphere.
Children are energetically jumping on a wooden platform in an outdoor area with adults watching. One child wears a shirt with cartoon characters. Trees and a building are visible in the background, along with several spectators.

Community-driven design process

Community engagement guided every phase of the Damascus Placemaking Initiative. Montgomery Planning kicked off the project with a community workshop in June 2024. The project team also distributed a community survey that received 279 responses. Planning staff presented a summary of the community’s feedback to the Montgomery County Planning Board on July 18, 2024.

Download the July 18 presentation slides.

Check out an ITE Journal article by Montgomery Planning’s project lead Audrey Vogel about the department’s community engagement, design process, key takeaways and lessons learned for replicating this type of work.

The concepts below are based on community input gathered at the project’s kickoff meeting and through the online questionnaire.

3D rendering of an outdoor community space featuring a playground, amphitheater-style seating, trees, and portable restrooms.
A 3D rendering of an aerial view with structured parking, multiple vehicles, and vibrant blue connectivity paths connecting various sections of the soon-to-be Damascus Placemaking Festival.
Overhead 3D rendering of a vibrant public park scene featuring a central flower bed surrounded by benches, with people engaged in various activities like walking and biking. Trees, additional benches, and a swing set are also visible in the area.
Digital rendering of a busy community space with multiple tents, tables, games and activities on the streets and sidewalks visually represented in a stylized, miniature format. Pedestrian traffic flows are highlighted with blue lines running through the scene.
Illustration of an outdoor event entrance with banners reading "Damascus" and "Placemaking" flanked by balloon decorations and flower-filled planters, leading to tents and stalls under a clear sky.
3D rendering of a colorful community space with green, blue and white tents, as well as seating, bike lanes, benches, and vibrant flower pots.

Project Timeline

  • Kickoff and Community Questionnaire
    June 2024 
  • Outreach and Planning
    Summer 2024 
  • Community Led Design and Build
    Fall 2024
  • Placemaking Festival
    October 19-20, 2024