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A more than twice as many people use ciation found that 75 percent of all shelter, restrooms, a children's play
<br /> parks for walking and picnicking than Americans had visited a park in their area and natural surface trails along
<br /> for participating in competitive ath- community within the past 12 the creek, while keeping most of the
<br /> letic events. months, and 60 percent of the people park in a natural condition.
<br /> Ili That same year, a Fort Collins sur- believed their community received The result: Stephens Park is a 14-
<br /> vey showed similar results. When significant benefits from parks. acre site filled with willows, alders,
<br /> asked to rank parks in terms of use, wildflowers, aspen and evergreens.
<br /> residents give the following answers: CULTURAL IDENTITY Besides people, frequent visitors
<br /> 68 percent used them to relax;64 per- For example, parks can emphasize include deer,elk,birds and butterflies.
<br /> cent used them to exercise;54 percent cultural values. Residents of Atlanta It is also bisected by Gore Creek, a
<br /> enjoyed them for picnics; 42 percent realized that staging the 1996 Summer trout stream that roars with melted
<br /> used them as playgrounds; 42 percent Olympics presented an historic oppor- snow in the spring and gurgles clear
<br /> tunity to revitalize the water by mid-July.
<br /> ft
<br /> :. M downtown area. Designing the park to create a
<br /> i::r._ 'k With proper planning, transparent connection between the
<br /> ;, K city leaders knew that natural area and the developed por-_tt ,,,,, .....,,,„, people could be drawn to tion was critical.
<br /> j , ', '4.the city core long after "The transition between the devel-
<br /> oi ' , the two-week event. oped areas and the natural landscape
<br /> .T_ ''' Leaders decided on a 20- is seamless,"says Park Superintendent
<br /> c �, .,,v acre site in the heart of Todd Oppenheimer.
<br /> ti
<br /> x L11.11 ," •-r., , the city for the Centenni- A careful choice of building materi-
<br /> b _ r: S al Olympic Park. als was essential to blend structures
<br /> '� "The park embodies with the natural setting. Vail takes
<br /> h
<br /> s }-" 7-;;;';.;f -'-• is -. ^`' the community spirit,and pride in ensuring that its public facili-
<br /> al it illustrates how a com- ties are designed in keeping with the
<br /> City leaders and park planners designed the Atlanta munity can provide an city's mountain setting.
<br /> Centennial Olympic Park,located on a 20-acre site in the enjoyable space for its Rock and wood are used extensive-
<br /> downtown area,as a landscape quilt to the
<br /> cultural heritage of the American oath and people, establish an his- ly,and the architectural style is appro-
<br /> • to symbolize 100 years of the r- odern Olympic Gam torical imprint and • priate for an area that receives more
<br /> express community val- than 20 feet of snow each year.
<br /> enjoyed the trees and flowers; 38 per- ues," says Rick Pariani, one of the The town is committed to using
<br /> cent used them as athletic fields; 34 park planners. natural materials, even though they
<br /> percent viewed wildlife; and 34 per- The park is designed as a landscape cost more for construction and main-
<br /> cent held sports events. Again, orga- quilt to convey the cultural heritage tenance. The playground equipment
<br /> nized athletic activity fell far below of the American South and to sym- and picnic shelter combines pre-man-
<br /> traditional passive uses. bolize the 100 years of the modern ufactured elements with natural mate-
<br /> Ironically, it is the programmed Olympic Games. The fountain, fea- rials. Images of trout and birds in
<br /> sports activities that generally receive tured prominently in media coverage flight are carved into the picnic shel-
<br /> the most attention from park plan- of the Olympics as the place where ter supports and the wooden bridge
<br /> ners. Traditionally, sports supporters children cooled off in the summer that crosses Gore Creek.
<br /> are well organized with a dedicated heat, is in the shape of the Olympic "Wood has an inherently warmer
<br /> constituency. Often their voices are rings. The plaza is stitched together feeling and pleasant character that
<br /> heard in a volume that is dispropor- with graphics with the Olympic quilt children and adults appreciate,"
<br /> donate with the community profile. of leaves sandblasted into granite Oppenheimer says.
<br /> Parks are often crammed full of soccer walkways.
<br /> fields and softball fields. A series of smaller plazas are placed THE TOURIST CONNECTION
<br /> While the initial appearance is throughout the park, each featuring a Park design can also connect
<br /> favorable, parks operators soon find different traditional historic quilt pat- tourists to a community. When
<br /> that these facilities are expensive to tern common in the South. The tourism in Virginia Beach started to
<br /> maintain, with city budgets proving lawns, gardens and plazas are sewn decline in the late 1970s, city plan-
<br /> inadequate or nonexistent. Athletic together with commemorative brick ners began revitalization efforts to
<br /> facilities are important, but parks paths, all of which contribute to the rebuild the beach boardwalk.
<br /> planners and elected officials have to patchwork quilt effect. Atlantic Avenue, the main corn-
<br /> look at the wider view of parks and mercial strip, is the dominant route
<br /> • bring more balance to the system. . GOING NATURAL for beach traffic, containing 36 short
<br /> Parks are highly visible and benefi- On a different level,parks can focus strips for beach access, and it became
<br /> cial parts of a community. A 1992 on nature. In Vail, Colo., town resi- apparent that moving pedestrians
<br /> national survey published by the dents and planners developed a plan from the hotels, retail and parking
<br /> National Recreation and Parks Asso- to include a turf play field, a picnic areas of Atlantic Avenue via the short
<br /> 32 October 1996 AMERICAN CITY St COUNTY
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