There’s something about living in the South and sitting on a porch. The porch is a special space between the road and the home where neighbors can sit, observe, and have conversation. It builds trust between neighbors and serves as a public safety tool offering “eyes on the street”. Over time, it can offer a deeper civic bond with neighbors looking out for kids playing, asking for advice, loaning out tools, and sharing treats and recipes.
A porch can be used for other things as well. We’ve been seeing local businesses offer up their “porches” to entrepreneurs with pop-up markets, like they do in at Dog Eat Dog Vintage on the East Side, or food trucks, like Bella Vita Jewelry with Loblolly (tomorrow, Friday from 5-7:30pm!). And just yesterday, Control Records hosted a very special porch concert featuring the Head and the Heart (in action here and recapped here). An estimated 200 people strolled over and gathered to watch a short acoustic set, bonded over beautiful melodies and lyrics, and exchanged waves and hellos.
If you want to dive deeper into the magic of porches, here’s a few fun reads:
Who doesn’t love a good front porch (Bloomberg)
Refuge & Prospect: The Front Porch (Strong Towns)
