During the early 2000s, when I was an undergrad at UNC-Chapel Hill, Raleigh wasn’t on my shortlist of hangouts. I knew the area around N.C. State, which usually warranted the rare trip to Raleigh in the first place. Beyond that, I never found a compelling reason to revisit.
So, almost 15 years later, when my husband suggested that we leave Chicago to make the City of Oaks our new home, my first thought was still grounded in that tainted opinion. I quickly blurted out, “What the heck is there to do in Raleigh?”
There are several ways that living in a big city can spoil you. But first and foremost, in my opinion, are its third places. A phrase coined by sociologist Ray Oldenburg in the late 1990s in his book The Great Good Place, a third place is a place between home (first place) and work (second place) where a community can easily come together to mingle, relax, and get inspired.
Third places are low on personal investment. You don’t need to dress up, or drive long distances, or pay a lot of money. They allow you to make last-minute plans with friends. They provide a space that is inclusive for all types of people of all backgrounds and ages. Basically, third places share art, beauty, and community equally to anyone who shows up.
One of the best-known examples of a third place in Chicago is Millennium Park, where my friends and I used to meet up with nothing more than a picnic blanket and have a lot of good conversations. Some days, we’d catch a free performance by an artist we couldn’t otherwise afford, but most of the time, we just lazily lingered, talked, and enjoyed the good weather. These rituals only intensified once we became parents because, as it turns out, kids love third places, too (and you don’t need to clean your home to see your friends). The patchwork of picnic blankets would grow in size, each of us bringing whatever we could to share.
My initial hesitation at the thought of moving to Raleigh was really me wondering how much of this experience I would be able to replicate here. The answer has been slowly unraveling in these last four or so years.
In many ways, I’ve been amazed at how easily I’ve kept up with my love for the arts and theater in Raleigh and the greater RTP area (actually more than what I managed in Chicago). I also feel like I have enjoyed more fancy meals here than back in the day. I am a proud Raleighite by all means. And in terms of third places, I’ve found a lot of joy and comfort now that Moore Square Park and Transfer Co. Food Hall have opened downtown.
Still, with all of the development going on, I think we all deserve more than just a couple of options. I am curious to know how you all feel about the choices you have in your neighborhoods. What are your favorite third places, and why are they important to you?
Years after the publication of his book, Oldenburg wrote in a 2014 New York Times column that “Joyful association in the public domain is far better than watching television in our lifeless subdivisions.”
I still love my TV more than Oldenburg might approve, but I do hope that city planners spend more time considering not just how many mixed-use condos and office buildings to accommodate, but also community spaces that allow the likes of me to spend more time with my friends—without having to clean my home.
Voices is made possible by contributions to the INDY Press Club. Join today at KeepItINDY.com. Comment on this column at [email protected].
CHIKA GUJARATHIis a Raleigh-based writer and author of the Hello Namaste! children’s books. Her work can be found on her blog The Antibland Chronicles.
Your neighborhood’s our neighborhood. Keep up with it.
Join 24,000 of your neighbors who read the INDY Daily newsletter.
There's an INDY newsletter for you. Find it here.
We're the INDY, the Triangle's alternative newspaper for the last 40+ years. Get the good stuff straight to your inbox.
In Praise of the Community Spaces That Make Cities Great
Share this:
During the early 2000s, when I was an undergrad at UNC-Chapel Hill, Raleigh wasn’t on my shortlist of hangouts. I knew the area around N.C. State, which usually warranted the rare trip to Raleigh in the first place. Beyond that, I never found a compelling reason to revisit.
So, almost 15 years later, when my husband suggested that we leave Chicago to make the City of Oaks our new home, my first thought was still grounded in that tainted opinion. I quickly blurted out, “What the heck is there to do in Raleigh?”
There are several ways that living in a big city can spoil you. But first and foremost, in my opinion, are its third places. A phrase coined by sociologist Ray Oldenburg in the late 1990s in his book The Great Good Place, a third place is a place between home (first place) and work (second place) where a community can easily come together to mingle, relax, and get inspired.
Third places are low on personal investment. You don’t need to dress up, or drive long distances, or pay a lot of money. They allow you to make last-minute plans with friends. They provide a space that is inclusive for all types of people of all backgrounds and ages. Basically, third places share art, beauty, and community equally to anyone who shows up.
One of the best-known examples of a third place in Chicago is Millennium Park, where my friends and I used to meet up with nothing more than a picnic blanket and have a lot of good conversations. Some days, we’d catch a free performance by an artist we couldn’t otherwise afford, but most of the time, we just lazily lingered, talked, and enjoyed the good weather. These rituals only intensified once we became parents because, as it turns out, kids love third places, too (and you don’t need to clean your home to see your friends). The patchwork of picnic blankets would grow in size, each of us bringing whatever we could to share.
My initial hesitation at the thought of moving to Raleigh was really me wondering how much of this experience I would be able to replicate here. The answer has been slowly unraveling in these last four or so years.
In many ways, I’ve been amazed at how easily I’ve kept up with my love for the arts and theater in Raleigh and the greater RTP area (actually more than what I managed in Chicago). I also feel like I have enjoyed more fancy meals here than back in the day. I am a proud Raleighite by all means. And in terms of third places, I’ve found a lot of joy and comfort now that Moore Square Park and Transfer Co. Food Hall have opened downtown.
Still, with all of the development going on, I think we all deserve more than just a couple of options. I am curious to know how you all feel about the choices you have in your neighborhoods. What are your favorite third places, and why are they important to you?
Years after the publication of his book, Oldenburg wrote in a 2014 New York Times column that “Joyful association in the public domain is far better than watching television in our lifeless subdivisions.”
I still love my TV more than Oldenburg might approve, but I do hope that city planners spend more time considering not just how many mixed-use condos and office buildings to accommodate, but also community spaces that allow the likes of me to spend more time with my friends—without having to clean my home.
Voices is made possible by contributions to the INDY Press Club. Join today at KeepItINDY.com. Comment on this column at [email protected].
CHIKA GUJARATHI is a Raleigh-based writer and author of the Hello Namaste! children’s books. Her work can be found on her blog The Antibland Chronicles.