How green grows my city
In the last post we celebrated the birthday of the Randel map that introduced the modern street grid to Manhattan. That initial map didn’t include Central Park; it was some time later that city leaders realized the potential of a vast new park and ordered Olmsted and Vaux to design it.
Likewise, in Birmingham there was no large central park designed in the initial grid of the city; only smaller parks (such as Linn Park). Large amounts of land were set aside at the railroad tracks as a “Railroad Reservation” for industrial use. Part of that Reservation is now Railroad Park, which is vying for the title of Best New Park for 2011 in the Daily Green‘s online Heart of Green awards: vote for it here.
We are up against some pretty big competitors, including the fantastic (and about to expand) High Line in New York City, so spread the word about this vote! Go parks!
Bhamarchitect's Blog 
Thanks for the link. I was tempted to vote for the Highline, having walked it last October, but I stayed local and clicked on Railroad Park. Wish they’d included a link for graphics. Very good company.
Very good company indeed! The Highline is a tempting vote for anyone who’s been there. It’s indeed fantastic. Thanks for staying local for this one though!
Jeremy C. Erdreich, AIA, LEED AP Erdreich Architecture, PC 2332 Second Avenue North Birmingham, AL 35203 tel 205.322.1914 fax 205.322.1925 http://www.erdreicharchitecture.com