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A new pavilion design in Arkansas from Trahan Architects in a public park designed by Spackman Mossop Michaels is making space that encourages creative play while serving the greater needs of its community. Funding for the project was provided through the Walton Family Foundation Design... View full entry
Brooks + Scarpa has shared photos of its recently completed design for the Youth Sports Complex in Pompano Beach, Florida. The concept of the 10-acre project centers around The Field House, an enclosed 4,100-square-foot pavilion structure at the center of the park. Approached from the north... View full entry
Plans for the redevelopment of the soon-to-close Santa Monica Airport have become clearer after the City Council approved an agreement with Sasaki Associates in December that would deliver a “Great Park” concept to the 227-acre site after 2028. The new *Airport Conversion Planning Project... View full entry
Polish firm SLAS architekci has injected an eye-catching multifunctional public space into a university campus in the southern Polish city of Chorzów. Called “Activity Zone,” the project was a nominee in the 2022 European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture – Mies van der Rohe... View full entry
A new master plan led by SWA Group has been revealed by the city of Irvine, California, showcasing a park design that, at 1,200 acres, would create one of the largest municipal park environments in the nation. The so-called Irvine Great Park would transform the site of the historic former Marine... View full entry
The Prospect Park Alliance and Mayor Bill de Blasio are announcing today that the city will allocate $40 million in the city budget to Prospect Park. This is the largest single allocation of funding from the city in the park's history and will be used to make much-needed upgrades and restorations in its northeast corner, known as the Vale. — The Gothamist
The $40 million in capital funding will help to restore the historic Children’s Pool and former Rose Garden, originally constructed in the 1890s, that have fallen into states of disrepair. The project plans for the creation of a sensory garden and rustic arbor, a nature play area, and a... View full entry
Trahan Architects and Spackman Mossop Michaels have revealed their design for the renewal of Luther George Park located in downtown Springdale, Arkansas. Commissioned by the Downtown Springdale Alliance, the park is a part of the city's larger plan to create dynamic public spaces and plazas... View full entry
... [Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates] have renovated and expanded the arch grounds, originally designed by famed Modernist landscape architect Dan Kiley. New parks adjacent to the grounds are intended to funnel activity to the riverfront and work as connective urban tissue for the city’s most iconic feature, as well as to serve as a pedestal for that quicksilver curve. — citylab.com
The winning design by Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates has reconnected the St. Louis Gateway Arch with its surrounding environment. The $380-million renovation allows for tourists and locals alike to enjoy the entire space around the Arch. The freshly landscaped grounds are mostly open now... View full entry
An unmistakable irony creeps vinelike through Olmsted’s landscape theory: It takes a lot of artifice to create convincing “natural” scenery. Everything in Central Park is man-made; the same is true of most of Olmsted’s designs. They are not imitations of nature so much as idealizations, like the landscape paintings of the Hudson River School. Each Olmsted creation was the product of painstaking sleight of hand, requiring enormous amounts of labor and expense. — The Atlantic
For more on Olmsted and his parks today, check out some past articles:First commemorative statue of Frederick Law Olmsted to be unveiled in North CarolinaObama chooses Jackson Park as the site for his Presidential CenterAlbright-Knox Gallery announces short list of firms for $80m expansion... View full entry
A religious organization sued the city of San Francisco to remove an open-air urinal from a popular park that it calls unsanitary and indecent.
The Chinese Christian Union of SF filed a civil complaint last week demanding the city remove the concrete circular urinal from iconic Dolores Park.
The group says the urinal, which is out in the open and screened only with plants for privacy, "emanates offensive odors," ''has no hand-washing facilities" and "it's offensive to manners and morals."
— AP
For more toilet-related designs, check out these links:This Nano Membrane Toilet could solve the world's sanitation crisis – and charge our phonesToilets for everyone: the politics of inclusive design"Toilet Talk" – gender inclusivity in public restrooms, featuring... View full entry
LA has few corners as prominent as First and Broadway. Directly adjacent to the art deco City Hall and across from the LA Times building, the nearly-2 acre lot stands at the center of an increasingly well-trafficked pedestrian area. Now, some of the biggest names in town are competing to transform... View full entry
