Urban Green

by Harnik, Peter; Bloomberg, Michael R.

• ISBN13: 9781597266840
• ISBN10: 1597266841
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2010-04-15
• Publisher: Island Pr

Summary

Urban Green explores new and innovative ways for "built out" cities to add much-needed parkland. Peter Harnik explains why urban parks are needed, then addresses how much parkland is truly possible and where specific investment can go. He offers a variety of examples and practical solutions, giving helpful guidance to those vested in making cities more beautiful, sociable, ecologically sound, and successful. Book jacket.

Author Biography

Peter Harnik is the director of the Center for City Park Excellence at the Trust for Public Land and was a co-founder of the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy. He is the author of Inside City Parks (2000) and The Excellent City Park System (2003).

Table of Contents

Foreword	p. xi
Acknowledgments	p. xiii
Introduction	p. 1
Of Cities and Parks
How Much Parkland Should a City Have?	p. 13
The Different Kinds of Parks and Their Uses	p. 20
Is It Acres, Facilities, or Distance?	p. 25
Parks and Their Competition	p. 33
Neighborhoods Are Not All Created Equal	p. 38
It's Not How Much but Who and Why	p. 42
A Process Rather than a Standard	p. 46
Stop, Look, and Listen	p. 49
Analyze and Prioritize	p. 53
Don't Forget Money and Time	p. 56
Finding Park Space in the City
Buying It	p. 63
Utilizing Urban Redevelopment	p. 70
Community Gardens	p. 83
Old Landfills	p. 90
Wetlands and Stormwater Storage Ponds	p. 94
Rail Trails	p. 98
Rooftops	p. 104
Sharing Schoolyards	p. 110
Covering Reservoirs	p. 116
River and Stream Corridors	p. 120
Cemeteries	p. 125
Boulevards and Parkways	p. 131
Decking Highways	p. 136
Closing Streets and Roads	p. 142
Removing Parking	p. 147
Adding Hours Rather than Acres	p. 154
Conclusion	p. 159
Tables
That's Quite a Spread You've Got! (Acres of Parkland per 1,000 Persons)	p. 15
Howdy Neighbor! (Persons per Acre of Parkland)	p. 18
Parks for Daytimers, Too? (Commuters and Population Change)	p. 18
Parkland for People (Acres per 1,000 People)	p. 19
A Park Too Far? (Maximum Distance Goals)	p. 28
How Green Is My City? (Parkland as Percentage of City)	p. 47
The Cost of Buying Parkland	p. 65
Developer Exactions	p. 68
Second Time Around (Redevelopment Authority Parks)	p. 71
Garbage In, Park Out (Landfill Parks)	p. 91
Goodbye Train, Hello Trail (Rail Trails)	p. 99
"Boulevardozing" Highways (Expressway to Park Conversions)	p. 134
Out of Sight, Out of Mind (Parks Constructed Over Highways)	p. 137
Do Not Enter (Park Roads Closed to Autos)	p. 144
Pavement in Paradise (Parking Spaces in Parks)	p. 148
Living on the Edge (Population Density around Parks)	p. 153
Recommended Reading	p. 161
Population Density, Largest Cities	p. 165
Acres of Parkland per 1,000 Persons, Largest Cities	p. 168
Parkland as a Percent of City Area, Largest Cities	p. 171
Spending per Resident on Parks and Recreation, Largest Cities	p. 174
Index	p. 177
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