Have you ever been to a small town without empty lots? Me neither.
They don’t have to stay empty either! This is one of my favorite ideas – Create an outdoor museum!
Jerry Johnson, from JLJ Design Studio in Richardson, Texas, came up with an idea of a rusted tractor graveyard, but you could make almost any kind of outdoor museum display.
What weather-resistant or happily-rusty artifacts would tell the story of your town?
In many small towns, retired farmers have moved into town. I’d bet these guys could round up a few old tractors. It would bring farmers from all around to visit too. It doesn’t have to be permanent either. Maybe you try it for one season or until the owner sells the land.
Maybe someone could set up a couple of garden sheds there too. Maybe sell some fishing lures they made at home. Maybe even sell the garden sheds!
I know there’s a lot of maybes in those sentences. that’s because it’s your town. And this outdoor museum could be chaotic. That’s okay too! Deepak Chopra said “All great things are created by chaos.” Chaos indicates there is a lot of people involved. When there’s a lot of people involved, it shows they are excited about their town. That’s quality of life. And you know quality of life makes a town the best place to be!