Somehow I found the article missing the solution, the organisation argues that "placemaking" [1] helps. They also argue that "Will this public project generate enough tax revenue to sustain its maintenance over multiple life cycles? Try asking that -- you will be amazed." is the question to successful public projects. But, I don't know if that holds true universally.
[1] https://www.strongtowns.org/journal/2011/6/16/the-growth-pon...