The Irony of Central Park
Margaret Crawford’s text “Everyday Urbanism” made me
question the role of urban designers and urban planners. If these acts of every
day life that she talks about are bound to emerge in the city landscape at some
point and in some way, how do urban planners design public space for that? This
notion led me to consider examples of public space that was actually planned
and was actually successful in terms of its everyday use, which brought me to
Central Park. Olmstead’s park is one of the most used public spaces probably in
the country, and not just by tourists.
Although the park may not be used every day in the city the
way that Crawford mentions, it has become almost a necessity in the lives of
New Yorkers, an extension of their apartments, because the rest of the island
is so incredibly dense. However, the origination
of the project is dripping in irony. The park was conceived by designers and other
influential people in New York and to make the park happen, the area where it
was planned for had to be cleared of its inhabitants. Thousands of people who
owned this land and had built churches and communities, people who had
developed the area in an organic way based on the needs of the communities, had
to be relocated to make way for a different type of social space. What if these people
didn’t want a 778-acre park in their city? And today, what would New York be without
it…
I love Central Park and other parks of New York. It is definitely a place for locals and tourists alike, as you said. I lived far from Central Park when I lived in NY, but found myself there for many concerts, events and just to meet people. The parks are so important when you are living in a studio apartment! I didn't realize that people where thrown out to create the park... I do remember hearing that Olmsted was interested in creating places that looked very natural so he designed where every tree and rock should go.. not exactly a natural way of doing things, but the result is like a natural oasis in the middle of the city.
ReplyDeleteI love that you're calling out the irony of central park. While the creation in today's world becomes a beautiful extension of people's apartments and almost becomes their backyard, like you mentioned, hundreds of peoples and communities were displaced for this to happen. What's worse? NYC without Central Park of the displacement all those who resided their.
ReplyDeleteI think it is really interesting view on urban planning. It seems that very few urban plans are still viewed as successful, but Olmsted's parks and urban grids seem to be two that have stood the test of time. What made them so long lasting? It is that their designs provide just enough structure to be flexible for different uses?
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