In the early 20^th Century, landscape architects Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux developed the idea of “parkways.” These would stitch parks in the city and outlying suburbs together with pleasure roads. The Sunday drive was born; in the 1920s, owning a vehicle was a luxury, and the well-to-do opted to travel along the parks and parkways to enjoy the scenery.

I began to rethink our traditional park model as I walked my dog around our neighborhood. We walked from our home, around the neighborhood streets, and then into the park and conservation areas. It had always bothered me that the parks did not connect to each other, which was, of course, the point in the cheap gas era of the 1920s. Was there a way, I wondered, to string together a series of parks in order to create linear parks that will better address the needs of our 21st Century society? What about traffic? Could parkways be added to create a grid that would facilitate alternative transportation systems and other green goals?

I sought to answer these questions with the Parkway City model. The Parkway Grid would help alleviate traffic mazes, congested streets, sprawl, and congested housing situations, while providing a greater impetus for pedestrians, cyclists, and alternative modes of transportation. Linear parks are longer than they are wide and are designed to utilize public land next to residential areas, canals, streams, electrical lines, highways, or shorelines. In other words, much of this land is considered undesirable, especially those lying on flood plains. It could go to waste, or it could be used to create a highly desirable community asset.

The benefits of such parks are numerous: they are accessible by main arteries, and they provide access to a variety of trails that link to other parks and open spaces. They are ideal for activities ranging from walking and jogging to horseback riding and fishing. Its greatest benefit, however, is that the model can be applied to any city anywhere in North America. Any city, whether building from the ground up or having to revamp its existing structure, can optimise its park system and green belts to utilizeland better in institutional, commercial, residential and industrial areas, increase productivity and mobility, and revitalize transit and infrastructure.

The Parkway City system of linear parks would facilitate mass transit, as well as that by pedestrians and cyclists, utilize land more efficiently, decrease Main Street congestion, and make my daily dog walks a whole lot more enjoyable.

Continue Reading…”Parkway City Grid”