Tour of Downtown Palo Alto's Hidden Public Open Spaces (POPOS)
About this Event
Tour of Downtown Palo Alto's Hidden Public Open Spaces
Join artist Lisa Van Dusen for an engaging walking tour of Downtown Palo Alto’s Privately Owned Public Open Spaces (POPOS). Along this 1.5-mile route, Van Dusen will share the evolving story behind , an ongoing participatory public art project that uncovers Palo Alto’s twelve hidden POPOS.
Created through agreements between the City and developers in exchange for expanded development rights, these plazas, pathways, and a spectacular garden were intended for public use. Yet many remain unmarked, largely unknown, and vastly underutilized.
Part walking tour, part public artwork, the tour invites participants to playfully activate these overlooked spaces and consider what they reveal about the role of the Public, and the often-invisible systems that shape how we share.
This spirited tour explores these secret spots - some tucked away and others hiding in plain sight. Discover these unique open spaces you didn’t even know existed. These "public benefits" await you as a full-fledged member of the Public.
This activation is part of Public Benefit: Pop-Ups in the POPOS, an ongoing public art project supported in part by a City of Palo Alto ArtLift Grant.
Free and open to the Public. All ages welcome. Participants under 18 must be accompanied by an adult or guardian.
MEDIA RELEASE
Participants hereby grant permission for photographs, video, and/or audio recordings of themselves, which may be used for documentation, exhibition, publication, and promotional purposes related to Public Benefit.
WAIVER OF LIABILITY (see FAQ)
https://youtube.com/shorts/QAi7t0M5AEo?feature=share
Palo Alto Mayor, Vicki Veenker bowls a strike at the Double-Wide Sidewalk, the POPOS at 390 Lytton Avenue on the June 27th, 2026 tour of Downtown Palo Alto's Hidden Public Spaces. Yahoo!
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