Density Digest | Third Places & Faith

April 2, 2024

density dad is a reader-supported publication covering all things urbanism and the built environment. Topics range from housing and public transportation to land use, safe bike infrastructure, and building equitable communities. I'm passionate about writing and aspire to cover this work full-time. Your subscription enables this pursuit. Join me in crafting meaningful content. Subscribe today.

Feels much like a timely post after Easter so hope you enjoy!

Let's get right into it!

Third Places & Faith

For many including myself, places of worship are people's first interactions with a third place. I grew up in my grandmother's church in Richmond, Virginia's Church Hill neighborhood and it was somewhere I knew that things would feel familiar. I would see the other kids and my other family members each Sunday on the same pew. On occasion, I'd even see my grandfather who was formally married to my grandmother but still called the church home.

I stumbled upon a Reddit thread with someone looking for "a sense of community" and "like-minded individuals" to commune with and I was surprised to see that many responded that it sounded like this person was looking for a church home. The comments came from a rather positive place. I have somewhat assumed that a majority of young professionals have done away with religion, but I'm constantly surprised when I'm offered an invite to church or share our places of worship with people I meet around my age.

It poses the question, what could businesses and localities learn from places of worship to capture and create new third places? There is plenty of negative that can be said about the Church but when done right, I believe there's some lessons that are often overlooked.

Ever taken a church van?

What if gyms or libraries offered ways to move people to ensure they could take care of their physical or mental health without the weight of car ownership?

What about bake sales? It was an incredibly effective way to crowdsource, right?

Beyond the paywall:

• Third Places & Faith (Cont'd)
• What To Read
  • Congestion Parking Arrives Stateside
  • Gondolas
  • Canada's Housing Crisis
• What To Watch - What Is New Urbanism? Celebration, Florida