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Summary of case studies309ment to act regarding this challenge, the Kenya governmentestablished the Street Families Rehabilitation Trust Fund.The trust’s mandate is to coordinate rehabilitation activitiesfor street families in Kenya, educate the public, mobilizeresources and manage a fund to support rehabilitation activities,among other functions.The fund has made important progress in its mandateduring the period of its existence. Among its key achievementsare:• spearheading the establishment of affiliate committeesin major towns to oversee local activities of the rehabilitationof street people;• overseeing capacity-building initiatives among serviceproviders in providing basic psycho-social rehabilitationservices;• facilitating entry into school for rehabilitated streetchildren; and• facilitating the provision of vocational training forrehabilitated street youth.Although an important headway has been made in the periodof the fund’s existence, there is still plenty of work to bedone before proper mechanisms for managing the challengeof street people can be put in place.Effective crime prevention in New York, USNew York City, following a national trend, has had decliningcrime rates for 30 years. Midtown Manhattan, once apopular entertainment district in the city, started a period ofdecline during the late 1960s that led to neglect, abandonmentand increased criminal activity. Successive cityadministrations implemented policies to improve lawenforcement with good results; but other aspects needed tobe addressed, as well. During the 1980s, private non-profitgroups decided to get involved and a period of redevelopment,restoration and revitalization was initiated. BryantPark was one of the catalysts for this process.The redevelopment of Bryant Park was entrusted to anon-profit group formed especially to restore, maintain andmanage the park. The city, private sponsors and businessesin the area formed a partnership, providing channels forpublic input regarding redesign and redevelopment. Certainareas within the park had been appropriated by criminals.Most tourists, business people working in the area andpatrons of the adjacent library, particularly women, avoidedthe park. The park’s design detached it from its surroundingswith the intention of providing a place of respite from theurban chaos; however, this isolation turned it into theperfect hiding place for derelicts.Several public–private partnerships were establishedduring the 1980s to aid in revitalization efforts. Some groupsopposed these management agreements even though localgovernment retained its authority over the public areas.Despite these concerns, these partnerships proved effectivein not only restoring public areas, but also in maintainingorder and, thus, working in the public interest to increasesecurity for everyone. Using a Business ImprovementDistrict Strategy whereby commercial property ownersimposed a surtax on themselves to pay for such things assecurity and physical improvements, two public–privatecoalitions supported the regeneration of the park over asustained period of time. The effort included a redesign ofthe many physical elements of the park that were thought tohave contributed to its demise as a public place. Thisincluded natural and built surveillance obstacles, pathways,obstructed entrances and the generally enclosed nature ofthe site that cut it off from the surrounding city. This effortwas also supported by New York mayors and by the police,who had made it a policy to reclaim public space for publicuse.Even though Bryant Park had been an importantpublic place in the city for more than 100 years, its periodsof decline had prevented citizens from enjoying it and hadallowed part of the public realm to become a breedingground for criminal activities. Today, the park is a desirabledestination; it has also become self-sufficient since it is theonly park in the city that does not receive any publicfunding. The existence of public spaces such as the restoredBryant Park confirms that even large and dense urban placessuch as New York City can offer their citizens the opportunityto enjoy public spaces. These opportunities are part ofwhat makes cities sustainable in the long term.Bryant Park is, indeed, a success story. Reclaiming apublic space that had been hijacked by drug pushers andusers and making it accessible to thousands of people on adaily basis is a considerable achievement. The decline incrime afforded by the restoration of Bryant Park is undeniableand is verified by police data and citizen reports.Evidence suggests that city administrators would not havebeen able to accomplish this feat on their own. By mostaccounts, the participation of private businesses and citizensmade it all possible. Public–private partnerships provedefficient and effective in restoring and managing not onlyBryant Park, but several public spaces in New York andelsewhere.The spatial changes in the park have made it welcomingto any citizen or visitor passing by. The homelesscontinue to be welcome as long as they abide by park regulationsand behave in a manner that is acceptable to themajority of the people benefiting from the public space. Interms of physical and design-induced changes, Bryant Parkalso serves as a model. Inspired by William H. Whyte’sphilosophy of urban space and his understanding of howsocial behaviour is influenced by it, the park’s design provesthat simple elements can be used to great effect.A combination of physical changes and increased lawenforcement can be credited with Bryant Park’s rebirth. Animportant lesson to be learned is that a better understandingof all the issues that factor into making not only public space,but entire cities, safe, comfortable and desirable is needed.When people are willing to be creative, tolerant and innovative,institutional and economic barriers can be surpassed.The Bryant Park experience also shows that sustainedefforts are necessary. Restoration projects that only addressone aspect of the myriad of problems usually comprisingdegraded areas do not yield the same benefits. The physical