Press

ONCE-BLEAK DOWNTOWN PHOENIX POISED TO ADD EVEN MORE APARTMENTS

Article by Stephen Hamway on December 11th, 2014 via Cronkite News

“For years and years and even decades, downtown wasn’t as safe, there wasn’t as much to do and people left after dark,” Whissen said. “Obviously, that’s not true at all anymore, but a lot of people still don’t know that, so we’re trying to change the beliefs about downtown.”

NEW COWORKING SPACE, LAB, INVITES CREATIVE INDIVIDUALS TO COME GET DOWN TO BUSINESS

Article by Alyssa Tufts on December 8th, 2014 via Downtown Devil

“I think it will be great because [The Lab] is going to be that hub for entrepreneurs in downtown,” Whissen said. “Especially (for) creative people to come together to think and strategize how to make the community better — opportunities to connect and having places like this is only going to help.”

Independent shops create Coffee Culture in Phoenix

Article by Whitney Woodworth on October 13th, 2014 via AZ Big Media

“Downtown Phoenix has had a bad reputation for such a longtime, Whissen said. People think it’s dangerous or there’s no local business or nightlife. Coffee Culture seeks to change that, latte by latte.”

Block party transforms downtown Phoenix dead zone into lively community hub

Article by Whitney Woodworth on September 29th, 2014 via Downtown Devil

“Better Block falls in line with our mission of activating downtown Phoenix one block at time,” Tempest said. “You can’t draw somebody to a street if there’s nothing there. All you need is something to do to bring people here.”

Advocates promote Phoenix’s growing coffee culture

Article by Kyle Mittan on August 1st, 2014 via Arizona Republic

“One of the great things about Phoenix is the coffee culture,” Tempest said. “So we thought it’d be a great opportunity to spotlight why Phoenix has such a great coffee culture and highlight all these great independent coffee shops.”

Bicycling Reality Trip: Reasons to Ride & How to Ride Right

Article by Melissa Quillard on April 18th, 2014 via Valley Metro Blog

“Start out slow and keep trying until you feel comfortable,” Quinn suggests. “Make yourself known on the road. Wave or make eye contact and slow down near driveways and around corners. You need to share the road with cars and find a way to communicate.”

My PHX Story: Quinn Whissen

Article by Quinn Whissen in the April edition of Local Revibe (print & digital)

“I read in a book once that every city has its own word. A word thats describes the spirit of the city and the people living in it. What is Phoenix’s word?”

‘Detropia’ documentary sparks discussion among Phoenix developers to find city’s niche

Article by Mariah Hurst, on Wednesday April 9th, 2014 via Downtown Devil
“Phoenix Urban Design Week, Reinvent Phoenix, This Could Be Phoenix and the many other initiatives currently in action are testament to Upton’s final remark: ‘Great cities have to be fought for, they don’t just happen.'”

April is Valley Bike Month in metro Phoenix

Article by Kaila White on April 2, 2014 via the Arizona Republic

“[On a bike], I cannot get out of my house without seeing one or two people I know,” [Quinn] said. “You’re part of the fabric of the city rather than sitting behind a windshield.”

The Future of Phoenix

Article by Katie Snyder, Photo by Carl Schultz in the March edition of Uptown Magazine

“We hope to continue engaging the public and receiving creative ideas, allowing people to explore their reams for the city and hopefully one day make them a reality.”

Community members launch project to promote historic preservation

Article by Samantha Incorvaia, On Wednesday, February 12th, 2014 via Downtown Devil

“We might not be experts, but we’re community members,” Tempest said. “People that live, eat and breathe Phoenix. They’re the experts.”

Community group gives Phoenicians a space to share ideas for empty lots, vacant buildings

Article By Sophia Kunthara, On Wednesday, November 13th, 2013 via Downtown Devil

“This Could be PHX, a new community awareness group, is working to educate and inspire Phoenicians to make positive changes to their city by providing a platform for community members to pitch ideas to revitalize downtown’s empty lots and vacant buildings.”

City of Dreams: Community Awareness Group Key to Urban Renaissance in the Valley

Article by Katie Snyder in the November issue of Local Revibe

“Since 2006, over $4 billion private and public capital has been invested in the 1.5 square mile downtown Phoenix area. Tempest and Whissen are hopeful their movement will inspire more change, making downtown a viable urban center.”

Digital Summit Phoenix – 2.5.15

“Hacking Human: A New Paradigm for Marketing” is a presentation Quinn Whissen developed to describe the changes that many businesses are facing when it comes to digital marketing. Using examples from This Could Be PHX, she shows how the changing paradigm of marketing works not only for businesses, but to enact social change within a city.

Pressnomics – 1.22.15

Quinn Whissen presented about marketing and This Could Be PHX at digital marketing conference, Pressnomics, to a crowd of entrepreneurs and top WordPress businesses. She spoke on the convergence of marketing, design, and community engagement to a crowd of 250 in Tempe, AZ.See her slides here.

AIGA PechaKucha Design-Driven Social Change – 7.27.14

Quinn Whissen was invited to do a lightning fast presentation in the 20×20 PechaKucha format, showing 20 slides for 20 sections. She spoke on the topic “Awareness + Experience + Action = Change” to tell the story of how her personal story has effected her work with This Could Be PHX and how we can all learn to take meaningful action in our lives. See her slides here.

AIGA Wine & Design at Wordcamp Phoenix Conference – 1.17.14

Our website was submitted to AIGA’s WordPress website design contest. Quinn Whissen was one of two web designers invited to speak on the topic of her design, content marketing, and development work on the website to the larger WordPress community in Arizona.

Phoenix Phabulous Experience – 12.11.13

Phoenix Phabulous Experience is an exciting civic engagement initiative, sharing the unique story of Phoenix through arts and culture, innovative storytelling, and captivating 3D projection. Ryan Tempest was invited to share his story about moving to Phoenix and also what he foresaw for the future of our city. He was in the company of other storytellers Bob Boze Bell, Jana Bommersbach, Pat McMahon, Ivan Makil, Barry Wong, Frank Barrios and Marshall Shore.

GoGreen Phoenix Sustainability Conference – 12.3.13

Quinn Whissen was invited to speak at the GoGreen conference as part of a panel on the topic: Intersections of Health + Sustainability: How We Live and Work. She spoke about This Could Be PHX’s efforts to move the city forward into sustainable practices and how to address the shifting work & lifestyle paradigm happening within the Millennial generation. She was voted in the top 5 favorite speakers from an attendee poll.

Yuppie Price Index: Phoenix Is The Fourth Most Expensive City

Interview on KJZZ 91.5 with Mark Brodie

“People want to live in an area that they love. That’s their main motivation for picking where they want to live. For myself, I know I want to live in Downtown Phoenix. And I accept that there may be higher living expenses and other things that I may not have to pay for living in Tempe, Mesa, or Chandler. But, I’m okay paying those expenses because it is all about where I want to live… and that’s in an urban environment.” – Ryan Tempest

Can Be Phoenix Be Attractive to Millennials?

Interview on KJZZ 91.5 with Mark Brodie
“The more and more I do all this city promotion work to help Phoenix become some place awesome, I’m learning that it is a creative process. And with every creative process, you need source material. You need to find what works and what doesn’t work.” -Quinn Whissen