This post is a follow-up to our previous entry about Philadelphia’s plan to turn 500 acres of underused land into city parks by 2015. When a single good-sized maple tree can add over $7,000 to a home’s sale value, according to a study in Portland, Oregon, it’s not difficult to imagine the effect of turning [...]
Filed under: green infrastructure, renewal | Tagged: baltimore, cleveland, philadelphia, property values | 1 Comment »
A recent article in Urbanite Baltimore discusses Baltimore’s third place ranking of parkland per 1,000 residents when compared to cities of similar population density. But when compared to spending per resident, Baltimore ranks 49th and is tied with Philadelphia and Arlington, Texas. In the 19th century, Baltimore was one of the greenest cities, with the creation [...]
Filed under: renewal | Tagged: baltimore | Leave a Comment »
It is easy to forget the many different types of parkland located in urban areas. Besides municipal parks, there are also state, county, regional and national parks. In the 85 largest cities, 15 cities are home to 48 National Park units, which include monuments, houses, forts, battlefields and preserves. Washington, D.C. has by far the [...]
Filed under: crime & safety, employment, partnerships | Tagged: baltimore, national park service, national parks, philadelphia | 1 Comment »
The New York Times reports that budget problems are forcing many of the nation’s state parks to close their gates or cut services. The National Trust for Historic Preservation agrees, listing State Parks at the top of its “Endangered Places” list. New York City Economic Development gets creative to address unfunded park project, temporarily transforming [...]
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The Baltimore Sun has come out in favor of imposing a plastic bag fee there similar to the one recently imposed in Washington, D.C. The Sun recommends that a 5-cent fee “should be seen as an investment in a cleaner, greener Baltimore, not just another revenue stream for the city’s general fund.” It recommends that [...]
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We just finished reading a new book about Baltimore’s first large public park, Druid Hill Park. Many may not have heard of this 745-acre greensward just north of the city’s downtown. In Druid Hill Park: the heart of historic Baltimore, authors Eden Unger Bowditch and Anne Draddy give great insight into how cities and their [...]
Filed under: renewal | Tagged: baltimore | 1 Comment »
Revitalization starts with goats, or so it goes for Baltimore’s Druid Hill Park. The city’s Parks and People Foundation is undertaking a $10 million renovation of a decrepit mansion on the edge of the historic 745-acre park that will house an environmental learning center, the group’s main offices and trail connections to the rest of [...]
Filed under: green infrastructure, maintenance/management | Tagged: baltimore, sustainability | 2 Comments »
On Common Ground, a magazine on smart growth of the National Association of Realtors has a great piece (pdf) on urban parks in its current issue. One of the more interesting pieces in the article is how density and parks complement each other. Baltimore’s 155-acre Patterson Park, situated in a neighborhood of tightly-knit row houses [...]
Filed under: planning | Tagged: baltimore, density, smart growth | 2 Comments »
