Project Description
HM White and Patricia McCobb collaborated to create a landscape master plan and site design for the rehabilitation of one of New York City’s first parks. Commissioned by a private/public partnership – the City Parks Foundation and neighborhood business sponsors, the landscape transformation has secured the Park’s future as an internationally recognized public park.
Thorough research and analysis led to a 21st Century schematic plan grounded in park history. A complete tree inventory was conducted to chart present and future conditions that established a preservation and landscape management program. The park’s design anticipates future losses and proposed new plantings to reinforce the park’s simplified visual and spatial organization.
Anchored by a new water basin and a restored historic fountain, the design reinforces the Park’s central oval at its core. A permeable stabilized crushed stone walking surface replaced trampled lawn and created a new gathering area while supporting the growing conditions for numerous mature trees. A new architectural order developed a hierarchy of entrances, pathways, and plaza nodes to minimize visual clutter and highlight the Park’s historic landscape characteristics.