2-26-87 Agenda & Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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a Selections from ANATOMY OF A PARK by • Albert J. Rutledge, ASLA DESIGN OF RECREATION AREAS MUST ADDRESS ITSELF TO MORE THAN SIMPLY THE SUPPLY OF A FACILITY. IT SHOULD STRIVE FOR THE PROVISION OF VISUAL REFRESHMENT NOT ONLY FOR THOSE WHO ENGAGE IN THE ACTIVITY WITHIN, BUT FOR THOSE WHO PASS BY DAILY AS WELL. PRINCIPLE 1 : Everything must have a purpose Design, therefore, must have purpose. One such purpose is to establish appropriate relationships between the various parts of the park complex. These parts include: Natural elements (water, land, plants, etc. ) ; use areas (game courts, ball diamonds, parking lots, roads, walks, maintenance yards, etc. ) ; major structures (buildings, dams, etc. ); minor structures (drainage, electrical and other utilities, fences, benches, drinking fountains, signs, etc:) ; people; and other animals. In addition, all are affected by forces of nature (wind, sunlight, precipitation, etc. ) . Interdependence among all the parts must be recognized and accomodated if any single part is to work. Consideration of such relationships extends from the broadest determination of the park's place in the city plan to the smallest decision about where to place the trash basket. • MATTERS OF CONCERN 1A. Relation of Park to Surroundings. Design focus must go beyond the limits of the park's boundaries in order to answer such questions as: Will the proposed park development cause flooding in the valley below? Will it cause traffic to back up into residential streets? Will the arrangement of the new facilities replace the pleasant view of undeveloped land with an unpalatable distraction? With the location of play areas encourage baseballs to fly into backyards? 1B. Relation of Use Areas to Site. Land cannot be wasted. Every corner of every site must be assigned a use. This does not necessarily mean active use. Lying fallow, land may serve as a buffer or a viewing panaorama. Whether they be for active or passive uses, facilities should be assigned only to portions of the site that are compatible with that use. 1C. Relation of Use Areas to Use Areas. Various uses should be analyzed in terms of compatibility with each other. For instance, nature walks, canoe lagoons, and spooning nooks can be considered alike for they are quiet and soul-satisfying, whereas tennis courts, handball surfaces, and basketball pavements are related because they are noisy and sweat producing. 1D. Relation of Major Structures to Use Areas. Is the gym entrance immediately handy to the playfield? Can the children move from kindergarten to the totlot without having to cross the parking area? Are classrooms • buffered from noisy game facilities? Can non-swimmers move from the bathhouse to the wading area without having to walk along the edge of a deep pool?