By: Alex Banuelos

Alex Banuelos — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 01:10:56 +0000

I think the kind of development you are describing could be a very powerful tool in a town like Tempe. Single family neighborhoods in Tempe may very well be in need of parks or public and semi-public spaces within their neighborhoods. With that said, I think that the best strategy would be to create a public participation program where people living in single family detached houses can become informed of the benefits that increased park use can bring to their community. Parks like Jaycee Park can be used to illustrate how communities benefit from a space where residents can come together. Because people may not be willing to give up a part of their private lawn in all cases, I think that the best way to encourage this type of development is to get people to see possibilities and benefits of this type of innovative development. Most importantly, we need to get people to want to interact with each other, and want to share spaces with their neighbors.

By: Jeff Jilek

Jeff Jilek — Fri, 06 Jul 2012 06:41:02 +0000

I am a graduate student in architecture and business at Arizona State University I agree that it is important that residents feel a sense of ownership of any community venture, including parks, for them to be successful. Grassroots planing is a great way to go about this. This is a political method. Another, rather spatial approach is cluster development. It has been corroborated through case studies that by a single family detached house giving up part of their private lawn into a central public eventspace, a vibrant, thick-threaded, united, and culture will form around a defensible space. How do you feel that parks in the Tempe area can be tied to a planning strategy of cluster development which Tempe could very much benefit from?

Comments on: How to Activate Neighborhood Parks in Downtown Tempe, Arizona

By: Alex Banuelos

By: Jeff Jilek