Revitalizing the Southeast Corner of Ocean and Pine: Activating Victory Park
Prepared for the Downtown Long Beach Associates By April Economides, Green Octopus Consulting May 2015
ABOUT THIS PAPER
This paper aims to offer inspiring and practical ideas of ‘what could be.’ It explains the benefits Long Beach will enjoy by restoring and activating Victory Park; it describes what ensures successful pocket parks, as well as what to avoid; it looks at successful pocket parks in other cities, including best practices in park management and activation; and it puts forth recommendations about how to move forward.
WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT TO LONG BEACH?
The intersection of Ocean Boulevard and Pine Avenue is one of the most important intersections in Long Beach. It serves as a main thoroughfare for pedestrians, including many conventioneers and tourists, and has a high volume of vehicular traffic. Located next to the Convention Center, it links the attractions, hotels and restaurants of South and North Pine Avenue and is one of the main intersections used by Downtown visitors.
The intersection is also heavily used by nearby residents, Downtown workers, business visitors and transit commuters. Prospective developers and business owners looking to relocate or open anew in Downtown regularly pass through this intersection, as do many of the Convention Center’s current and prospective clients. Two thriving businesses – the Renaissance Hotel and Rock Bottom Brewery – grace the north corners, and exciting plans are in the works for the Ocean Center Building located on the southwest corner.
In contrast to this activity, the approximately 11,000-square-foot property on the southeast corner is vacant, surrounded by a fence. Occasionally, transients access the area and sleep inside. The Renaissance Hotel is concerned about the blighted lot, which its guests look out upon, as do the occupants of the adjacent office buildings. Several other developments are in the works along this stretch of Ocean Boulevard; however, this prime location, as of yet, has no definitive plans for renovation.
This corner offers a large, untapped opportunity to bring social and economic value to Downtown. Most recently, the Downtown Long Beach Associates (DLBA) commissioned the Urban Land Institute to offer recommendations on how to better connect the waterfront to the Downtown core. One of its recommendations was to activate this important corner. But what should be developed?
Actually, that decision is already set in stone, and thankfully, it’s great news for all stakeholders: the southeast corner is part of Victory Park, deeded to the City of Long Beach more than a century ago and mandated as public park space.
Victory Park runs along the south side of Ocean Boulevard from Alamitos Avenue to Cedar Avenue. While it is used primarily as a decorative lawn and public art space – more to be viewed than actively interacted with (for example, there are few places to sit) – this last empty section of the park on Ocean and Pine has the opportunity to welcome people to sit and stay, and it’s located in the perfect area in which to do this. Removing the plywood fence to make way for the park will allow safer sight lines around the corner for pedestrians (and all users), which will make the corner feel – and be – safer.
With its location next to the Convention Center and as one of Downtown’s main intersections, this corner of Victory Park has the opportunity to become a ‘porch’ for this stretch of Ocean Boulevard – a place to meet up with friends and a place to sit and watch people come and go. For years, a mixed-use commercial project has been proposed for the 30,000 square foot empty lot behind it, and when that development progresses, Victory Park will actually function as that building’s public ‘porch.’
The reactivation of this space presents a wonderful social and economic opportunity for Long Beach’s residents, visitors, businesses, property owners and economic development goals. The sooner this part of Victory Park is transformed from a place of blight to a vibrant public amenity, the sooner Long Beach will become more attractive to its current and prospective stakeholders.
Let’s restore this hub of Victory Park into a source of civic pride and enjoyment.
Downtown Long Beach Associates | Green Octopus Consulting | May 2015 1
Inside the fenced-off area of Victory Park on the southeast corner of Ocean Boulevard and Pine Avenue, facing south.
Same space, facing west.
Downtown Long Beach Associates | Green Octopus Consulting | May 2015 2 THE BENEFITS OF POCKET PARKS
Pocket parks are small areas (typically one to four acres) of public space that offer an element of nature as well as places to sit and relax. They should add to a city’s friendliness and offer a place for people to come together.
Cities around the U.S. and beyond are converting empty lots into thriving pocket parks because the benefits of attracting new developers, businesses, residents, tourists, conventions and overall economic vitality – on top of other health, social and ecological benefits – are too good to ignore.
Successful pocket parks change dead zones into social experience zones. They:
• Make an area more friendly and vibrant. • Attract tourists and conventioneers, whereas lots that are ‘eyesores’ turnoff these groups. • Increase safety by attracting more people to the space. • Increase foot traffic. • Slow car traffic and increase pedestrian safety. • Reduce crime and conflict. • Rejuvenate intersections and neighborhoods. • Increase sales at nearby restaurants, cafes, bars and shops. • Increase the tax base by attracting new businesses, workforce talent and residents. • Create a higher quality of life. • Create opportunities for social interaction and community connection. • Offer a space for art and expression. • Boost real estate values and foster economic development. • Attract developers and investors to the neighborhood. • Reduce stress for nearby workers and other park users. Increase happiness, encourage walking and improve health. Healthier workers have fewer sick days and improved work performance. • Help business associations promote retail corridors and attract special events. • Bring more attention to the area and city by generating word-of-mouth advertising. A Chicago bike shop owner describes parklets, which bring similar benefits as pocket parks, as “Instagram heaven”, and another Chicago shop owner compared his neighborhood parklet to a "town square," noting that users sat in the parklet and just stared at storefronts. • Foster community pride and neighborhood attachment. • …and more.
ENSURING SUCCESS
Do all pocket parks bring these benefits? Unfortunately, no. They must be strategically designed, managed and activated to ensure success. Creating pastoral parks in urban centers without daily activation tends to invite blight – or at least ‘dead space.’ Cities get the kind of social environment they plan for. Public space must be thoughtfully created and cared for to support city life.
To encourage more ‘life’ in a place, cities must design for people. The best and easiest way to make a public space safe is to attract a lot of people and a diversity of people. Empty spaces attract unsafe and illegal behavior. Activated spaces attract desirable behaviors.
Whereas pastoral parks require a lot of maintenance from shrinking parks departments, pocket parks can be created in a way to nearly self-sustain. The good news is that the recipe for success is straightforward and tried-and-true. So what is the recipe for success?
Downtown Long Beach Associates | Green Octopus Consulting | May 2015 3 BEST PRACTICES
Successful urban pocket parks need three things to be successful: Good Design + Good Activation + Good Management.
Design: The Foundation for Success
Victory Park has specific design guidelines, which the City and DLBA (and any external landscape architect hired), should work together to follow and interpret.
Here are some recommendations on designing the space well for people:
Landscaping: In the 21st century, where California cities are facing drought and dwindling municipal budgets, landscaping should be drought-tolerant and easy and inexpensive to maintain. It is unlikely that the original drafters of the Victory Park guidelines would have required water- intensive sod had they known the City would be facing a severe drought. Low water landscaping, such as decomposed granite and drought-tolerant shrubs, is the only ethical way to see through the vision of Victory Park within modern day constraints. The landscape design can honor the guidelines, the drought reality and also the Coastal Commission’s dedication to coastal area-appropriate vegetation. The City and its people are best served by thoughtfully going this route instead of leaving the site in its current state of blight.
Seating: Seating that is comfortable, convenient and social makes people want to sit and stay, which is the goal when creating any successful pocket park. For this reason, chairs are preferable because they can be can be arranged in a circle for conversation. They can also be moved to orient toward or away from the sun, other people and activity. In contrast, benches tend to create private, individual spaces and not promote conversation. Some benches also encourage daytime and overnight sleeping. Chairs that are moveable, upright, light and weather-resistant are ideal. They should be stacked and locked at night to prevent theft. Chairs will also help balance the large scale of the surrounding tall buildings with smaller, h u m a n - s i z e d
e l e m e n t s The Porch in Philadelphia.
Downtown Long Beach Associates | Green Octopus Consulting | May 2015 4 Safety: Ensuring public safety is always a top consideration of any public space. One of the best ways to design this is to provide good sight lines (no blind spots) into the center of the park from all sides. In that respect, the heavily trafficked pedestrian and vehicular routes on Ocean Boulevard and Pine Avenue as well as the surrounding hotel and office buildings provide natural opportunities for ‘eyes on the park’ throughout the day.
Lighting: Lighting at night is important for safety – both for park users and passersby – and helps make the park’s activation be around-the-clock. Lighting can also be part of an artistic installation to maximize investment. For example, the San Francisco Bay Bridge’s elaborate light display garners significant media attention and visitors. Some visitors buy food and beverages at an adjacent eatery and sit on a bench and watch the lights, thereby bringing money to nearby businesses. While the size and budget of Victory Park is much smaller, a small creative light display should be considered since it can bring a variety of social and financial benefits.
Art: Some patrons will visit a park just to see an art installation, such as a sculpture or mural. In addition to attracting art lovers, the inclusion of art adds value for all users.
Color: Whether through landscaping, furniture and/or art, elements of color tend to make a park happy and inviting.
Good design is only a third the equation, however. Without good activation and management, even a well- designed park will tend to attract drug use, other illegal activity and safety threats. In fact, not properly activating an urban park typically creates a magnet for people who engage in unsafe and/or illegal behavior.
Madison Square Park’s temporary “Bucky Ball” Installation, an ode to Buckminster Fuller by artist Leo Villareal.
Downtown Long Beach Associates | Green Octopus Consulting | May 2015 5 A Note On Cargotecture
The reuse of shipping containers, known as “cargotecture,” should be considered in the design. The 20’x40’ containers are modular and mobile and could be incorporated into a coffee kiosk design, public art or other elements. Cargotecture is environmentally, economically and socially responsible, as it reuses a material and honors the city’s history, industry and workers. It is trending in urban design around the U.S. (and beyond), but Long Beach has a stronger port and cargo history than most cities. Downtown is a logical location for cargotecture given its proximity to the Port and its hub as a tourist and conventioneer destination. Long Beach can assert itself as the cargotecture ‘capital’ of the U.S.
Ritual Coffee at ProxySF, San Francisco.
Activation: An Economic Element
Out of all the ways to activate – attract people to – this part of Victory Park, the element that will likely bring the most success across the board is the inclusion of a tasteful economic element, such as a coffee kiosk, particularly one that is locally owned and sells light food fare. The Victory Park Design Guidelines smartly allow temporary vendors. This element brings a multitude of important, far-reaching benefits:
• Café culture: Café culture, more than anything else, is what’s bringing back recreation to urban centers. The most successful (and common) parklet locations are outside of cafés. The most successful cafés have a parklet or other comfortable sidewalk seating. Bring café culture to a park, and you’ve created a people magnet. Cafés are where people tend to want to sit and stay. They offer comfortable seating, people watching and the opportunity to rest and have a beverage. A café is the best ‘staying’ activity, and staying activities are the number one way to establish lively city spaces.
Downtown Long Beach Associates | Green Octopus Consulting | May 2015 6 • Attracting people: As Jan Gehl says in his book Cities for People, “People come where people are.” A café is a people space, and building people into the activation plan in this way creates a reinforcing process of keeping the park populated. • Creating an active destination: A vending kiosk secures the park as a ‘somewhere,’ a destination. People also want to hang out (stay) somewhere that’s located near things, not in the middle of nowhere or a ‘dead zone.’ • Convenience: A coffee cart in Victory Park would create a convenience for the conventioneers and others who pass by. • Safety. Café purveyors and customers are built-in security guards or ‘eyes and ears’ for a place. Their very presence helps keep a place safe. It’s a win-win: instead of paying security guards to do that, people are actually paying you and doing it for you.
It is important that the economic element incorporated is thoughtful and contextual. A temporary, attractive kiosk operated by a locally owned and popular coffee company seems like the best fit for Victory Park. It could also sell juice and a small menu of to-go café fare, such as breakfast pastries, sandwiches and local organic fruit. The offerings should not compete with nearby brick-and-mortar businesses (for example, seafood, Irish, Greek, sushi, and South American). To keep the spirit of place, a locally owned, well-run venture is preferable. Corporatization of the space should be avoided entirely.
Other types of kiosks that work well are newspaper and magazine stands and also produce stands.
Ferrara Italian Café in Central Park, NYC.
Downtown Long Beach Associates | Green Octopus Consulting | May 2015 7 Additional Activation
It’s wise to create multiple reasons for people to visit a pocket park so that a large quantity and variety of people are attracted to the space. Here are different placemaking ideas:
Place to converse and stay: A commercial kiosk and moveable chairs are the best way to ensure this.
Place to meet: Invite organizations that offer walking tours to make the park their meeting spot. Ask Long Beach Heritage and local architects to start their cultural and historic tours here. Partner with the CVB to promote these tours to tourists. Invite other meet-up groups to make it their meeting spot.
Place for work: Free WiFi attracts lunchtime workers, conventioneers, business visitors, tourists and other users. Suggest that local organizations hold one-on-one and other small meetings there. The best way to promote this is to simply post a photo on Instagram and other social media showing people doing this.
Place for information: The Victory Park guidelines allow for public information kiosks. A small informational kiosk might include: o Fun facts about Downtown and the history of the park. o A map with destinations and businesses within walking distance. o A list of upcoming events and programming at the park.
Place for art: Programmed events are a great way to attract a variety of people to a park. Potential events could include live music like jazz on Sundays, kids multicultural music on Saturdays, Folk Fridays, Bluegrass Tuesdays and the DLBA’s Live After 5 on Thursdays. A nighttime light installation, a sculpture and/or mural, dance, live portrait sketches, live painting performances and a public piano for people to play are other ideas.
Place of play: Consider elements for adults and children, like a small play area or life-size chess. Choose games that don’t have balls that will roll out of the park (bocce ball and table tennis might be better in a different location).
Place of sport: Donation-based yoga or kids’ karate lessons are examples of weekend programming that works well in other parks.
Place of nature: Native landscaping helps connect people with nature since native plants attract birds and butterflies. Trees providing shade give tourists and others a place to rest amidst their shopping trips.
Place of education: Workshops about gardening, painting or history could be held.
Downtown Long Beach Associates | Green Octopus Consulting | May 2015 8 Management: Ensuring Long-Term Success
The most successful urban pocket parks in the U.S. are in New York City, and all were revitalized under the vision and management of a Business Improvement District (BID). A BID is an ideal institution to oversee the programming, safety and maintenance efforts of a pocket park, given that it already has a clean team, safe team and marketing team in place to manage the district in which the park is located.
The city government of course plays a huge role in the public-private partnership, and one of its most important roles is to help remove any bureaucratic barriers that slow down the process.
Other stakeholders, including the CVB, Arts Council for Long Beach and nearby businesses and residents should be involved as well. When the community helps conceive a place, community members feel they have a ‘stake’ in the park and want to help maintain and use it. They will be more likely to frequent it, pick up litter, tend to plants, host events, bring guests and promote it on social media.
An important part of park management is the marketing and promoting, which will be fun for the DLBA, CVB and other Long Beach boosters. Some ideas include: • Creating an informal, descriptive and hip name for the park could help ensure heavy, positive use – for example ‘The Spot at Victory Park’ (as in “Let’s meet at The Spot”). • Photos of the park and its various uses should be photographed and posted daily on The Spot at Victory Park’s Instagram, Facebook and Twitter page. • A website (perhaps located on the DLBA’s website) would have photos, information, and any upcoming events.
WHAT TO AVOID
Unsuccessful urban pocket parks tend to have things in common, too: • The lack of a commercial element tends to leave a pocket park greatly underutilized, especially by a diversity of people, giving way to blight. • Corporatization (allowing a corporate chain into a public park via selling goods or branding) makes the public space not special or quaint for some patrons. • Food trucks that compete with brick-and-mortar eateries sometimes upset those business owners. • Poor sight lines can make people feel unsafe and unwelcome and are an especially big deterrent for women, parents, the elderly and other more vulnerable users. • Uninspiring design leaves people uninterested in the space. • Litter and other unsightly features signal blight. • A park managed entirely by a city tends to fall short on keeping the park activated, safe and clean since city budgets are over-burdened and cities don’t tend to perform some services as well as BIDs. • A long bureaucratic process increases costs and the length of time that the lot remains a social and economic liability.
Downtown Long Beach already has parks and plazas that are underutilized by the public (a diversity of families, tourists, residents, shoppers, office workers, etc.) that attract drug users and other illegal activity. Public funds should not be spent to create parks that will be insufficiently programmed and managed.
Thankfully, there’s no reason to spend taxpayer dollars to create another space that serves as a magnet for undesirable behavior. The DLBA and City of Long Beach have an opportunity to create an easy and affordable solution that brings a host of benefits.
Downtown Long Beach Associates | Green Octopus Consulting | May 2015 9 CASE STUDIES
New York Parks
Some of the best examples of activated U.S. public urban parks are in New York City, where stakeholders have developed a recipe for success that has been replicated around Manhattan.
Two of the main ingredients for success are private management and a commercial element. Approximately 12 New York parks, publically owned by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, are privately managed by a non-profit conservancy closely connected to a BID. In most cases this means that the BID manages the park entirely and in other cases the conservancy’s board of directors is comprised largely of BID leaders. These parks have a business element, most typically a coffee kiosk and newspaper stand, but sometimes a restaurant or food kiosk or two.
These conservancies each provide additional or, in some cases, the only maintenance of the park. Funding comes from private donations and government grants. Adrian Benepe, a New York City parks department commissioner, said that the conservancies’ raising of private funds helps take burden off the city, allowing the city to then put more money into poorer parks that don’t have conservancies.
Central Park is run by a conservancy and has restaurants, coffee kiosks and other subtle commercial elements. Bryant Park, the U.S. poster child for turning a blighted park into a thriving destination, is managed by the Bryant Park Restoration Corp. (BPRC), a private management company and a cooperating BID of neighboring property owners. During the summer, the BPRC employs about 55 people who manage security, cleaning, landscaping and events.
The restoration of Herald Square and Greeley Squares in 1999 was spearheaded by the 34th Street Partnership BID, which says this about the effort: “Transforming what had been concrete wastelands into gorgeous oases in the heart of the District, the project created a much-needed space that serves workers, shoppers and tourists alike. Each Square offers chairs, tables and umbrellas, immaculate free restrooms and food kiosks operated by Wafels & Dinges and Nuchas. Herald and Greeley Squares have also served as sets for TV and film projects, as sites for product openings and as quintessentially ‘New York’ backdrops for photo shoots. And for over 50 years the image of Herald Square as the terminus for Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade has beamed into millions of American homes.”
Downtown Long Beach Associates | Green Octopus Consulting | May 2015 10 Madison Square Park, run by the Madison Square Park Conservancy, founded in 2002, is an interesting success story because, while people visit for a variety of reasons, one of the biggest draws is the Shake Shack. The Parks Department’s website says this about the eatery: “On sunny summer days, Madison Square Park becomes one of the city’s hottest destinations. Lines of hungry visitors craving a taste of the Shake Shack's milkshakes and hamburgers, some of the best in the city, wrap around the block.” The eatery has become somewhat of a New York City icon, and its presence helps keep the park activated and safe.
A NY Post article reported that the park’s popularity grew in 2003 when the Shake Shack opened and that this business has been very profitable for not only its owner, Danny Meyer, but also the park: “In fiscal year 2008, Meyer paid the conservancy about $348,000. In 2009, the city got $220,256 of Shack Shack’s $4.9 million revenue. Meyer pays the conservancy 8 percent of Shake Shack’s revenue. From that cut, the conservancy gives 4.5 percent of all the eatery’s revenue to the city.”
In January 2015, the Conservancy invited a New York brick-and-mortar upscale dessert shop to open its first pop-up. Customers of the Milk Bar’s 100-foot location enjoyed warm beverages and baked goods in the winter months while strolling the park and looking at the park’s outdoor art gallery.
The Conservancy is serious about offering visitors art. So serious that it formed the Madison Square Art initiative in 2004 and has since commissioned and shown more than 30 acclaimed artists’ work from a diversity of media. It also created ‘The Art Yard’ workshop series to teach kids visual and performing arts. Four music series, one specifically for kids, take place in summer and fall months. Madison Square Reads brings in famous New York authors four Thursdays in Fall to give readings. Special events, including the Kids Fest in Fall, featuring music, dance, theatre, puppetry and circus performances, take place annually. The park also organizes regular and annual horticultural and culinary and other events, such as Madison Square Eats’ semi-annual culinary pop-up market, which brings in popular New York chefs.
The Madison Square Park Conservancy raises 98% of the funds necessary to operate the Park, including the landscaping, park maintenance, security, cleaning and free event programming year-round. The park has a dog run and offers free WiFi.
Downtown Long Beach Associates | Green Octopus Consulting | May 2015 11 Philadelphia’s ‘The Porch’
Looking at how other cities are revitalizing empty or underutilized non-park land spaces – spaces like empty parking lots and even roads – is worthwhile for Victory Park planning since some elements may be applicable. These examples can also inform future planning for Long Beach’s non-park spaces.
Activating empty non-park urban space is an excellent way to bring economic and social vitality to an area until a planned development begins construction or to help attract new development. Some of these test spaces are so successful they become permanent – or they move nearby when development occurs on the site.
‘The Porch’ in Philadelphia is a well-documented public space conversion, with metrics, photos, lessons learned and other detailed information found in a September 2013 report, created by the non-profit University City District (UCD), the neighborhood and business association that spearheaded and manages The Porch.
Opened in November 2011, The Porch is adjacent to one of the nation’s busiest train stations, used by thousands of daily commuters and visitors, and surrounded by more than 16,000 jobs. Previously 33 parallel parking spaces, The Porch is now a 40-foot-wide stretch of sidewalk – or narrow plaza – open to pedestrians instead of cars. It’s full of colorful round tables with umbrellas and chairs, planters and trees.
During rush hour and throughout the day, pedestrians now have a safe and attractive commute. At lunchtime, workers come out in droves to eat outside or enjoy the noontime music series. Yoga classes, miniature golf, temporary art exhibits, farmers markets, happy hour events, music concerts, children’s activities and art classes activate the space every week. More than 100 special events, including concerts and temporary beer gardens, are held annually.
Downtown Long Beach Associates | Green Octopus Consulting | May 2015 12 The way The Porch came about was by UCD piggybacking on a large Pennsylvania Department of Transportation project. The Porch received a $500,000 grant from the William Penn Foundation as well as funding from the Knight Foundation. The name was created through a competition held by UCD, which says The Porch helps connect two districts to each other and gives commuters, workers and tourists a place to take a break or connect.
UCD described its initial design and programming approach as ‘beta testing.’ It experimented with a diversity of programming to see what would bring users to the site before making permanent capital changes. To determine what users liked and didn’t, it collected data.
The September 2013 data collection and report is an outstanding model for how to evaluate a programmed public space and also how to listen and respond to it. UCD describes its public space management as an iterative process, a consistent process of listening, responding and creating.
Observers looked at use patterns, including where people wanted to sit and which seats remained empty. This told UCD where to remove seats and instead place programming, like miniature golf. Users favored the movable chairs and lounge chairs over the fixed-in-place benches and planters, which told UCD where to invest future furniture funds.
Data collectors also interviewed 388 users directly. They learned “where they came from (51% from work, on a weekday), how they got there (94% by public transit, bicycle, or foot), what they like best about the space (movable tables and chairs), and what they would like to see improved (better WiFi service).”
The diverse data gathered told UCD what to retain and prioritize. For example, the three biggest requests from users were: train arrival/departure information; continuous food presence; and public art. This led UCD to expand food truck service, plan for future year-round food and drink service, and apply (and win) a $375,000 ArtPlace grant for public art.
While The Porch was designed as a low-cost test-run with fully removable elements, it was so successful that UCD announced in May 2015 ‘The Porch 2.0’ – a plan to make the design and food elements permanent. Groundswell Design Group will install tiered wooden platforms mixed in with planters and vine canopies, and overhead festoon lighting will extend the hours past sundown. Gehl Studio is installing colorful wooden slatted porch swings scattered around the space to add an element of play. A local restaurateur is opening Rotisserie at the Porch, a permanent food truck open daily for lunch. An adjacent trailer will offer beer and wine Wednesday through Saturday from 4–9 p.m. Revenue from the restaurant will benefit the West Philadelphia Skills Initiative, a program that connects employers with local residents seeking employment.
Miniature golf at The Porch.
Downtown Long Beach Associates | Green Octopus Consulting | May 2015 13 A Word About Learning From Private Land Development
There are also many examples of empty lots on private land that have been converted into temporary or permanent public space (privately owned and managed but open to the public). The References section below provides some of these examples and website links for more information. While the zoning might be different, these examples may offer inspiration in regards to design and programming for Victory Park.
IN CONCLUSION
Successful urban parks and public places help define a community’s economic and social vitality. They contribute to a strong quality of life, help attract and retain talent and grow stronger local economies. Twenty-first century cities need small parks and public spaces integrated within communities to relieve stress, promote positive social interaction and activate neighborhoods.
Temporary pocket parks are a relatively easy and affordable way to provide community value while testing out ideas. As Prema Katari Gupta, UCD’s director of planning and economic development, said, "Great public spaces are built over time. They evolve in response to user behavior." It’s also true, as hopefully this paper illustrates, that certain similarities exist between successful urban parks, particularly private management, a commercial element, moveable seating, an element of art and regular programming.
Those who deeded Victory Park to Long Beach would want the park refurbished and in use for a diversity of residents and visitors to enjoy and admire. The best way to honor them and our great city is to do just that.
Downtown Long Beach Associates | Green Octopus Consulting | May 2015 14 REFERENCES AND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
Central Park: http://www.centralparknyc.org
Bryant Park: http://www.bryantpark.org/about-us/management.html http://www.pps.org/reference/mgmtbryantpark/
Herald and Greeley Squares: http://www.34thstreet.org/bid-programs/public_space.html http://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/herald-square http://www.nycgovparks.org/photo_gallery/full_size/20386.jpg https://ktownandmurrayhill.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/c-ktown-6-71.jpg
Madison Square Park: http://www.madisonsquarepark.org/about-the-park/mission http://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/madison-square-park http://www.madisonsquarepark.org/news/press-releases/milk-bar-comes-to-mad-sq-park http://www.bloglepostiche.com.br/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/shake_shack_madison.jpg
The Porch: http://issuu.com/universitycity/docs/realizing-potential-porch%23download http://www.universitycity.org/videos-porch http://www.flyingkitemedia.com/devnews/ucd1108.aspx http://www.williampennfoundation.org/CreativePlacemakingGets1MLocalBoost.aspx http://www.universitycity.org/press/university-city-district-unveils-details-porch-20
General: • Managing urban parks: From Open Spaces to Vital Places • Pocket park paper: http://depts.washington.edu/open2100/pdf/2_OpenSpaceTypes/Open_Space_Types/pocket_parks.pdf • Pocket park article: http://www.salon.com/2012/06/16/stop_thinking_big/ • Photos of temporary kiosks: https://www.pinterest.com/pps_placemaking/on-the-move-placemaking-amenities/ • Photos of vendors, kiosks and cafes Located in Public Places: https://www.pinterest.com/mattburn87/public-space- amenities • Photos of pocket parks: https://www.pinterest.com/erwinelschott/pocket-parks-guerrilla-gardening/ and https://www.pinterest.com/search/pins/?q=pocket+parks • Cities for People, Jan Gehl (2010) • Tactical Urbanism, Mike Lydon & Anthony Garcia (2015) • Project for Public Spaces: www.pps.org
Other Programs:
San Francisco – Proxy: Across from Patricia’s Green in Hayes Valley on Octavia Street with Ritual Coffee Roasters, ice cream shop, museum shop, and beer garden – all housed in shipping containers. http://proxysf.net/ http://proxysf.net/events/?item=4752 http://proxysf.net/blog/?item=4853 http://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/print-edition/2012/03/23/finalist-best-community-impact- proxy.html?page=all http://sf.eater.com/2013/6/6/6423503/proxy-in-hayes-valley-re-upped-until-2021 http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/place/article/City-s-little-boxes-but-these-look-pretty-good-2298419.php http://www.sfweekly.com/sanfrancisco/biergarten-liters-of-beer-hearty-german-grub-and-one-of-the-citys-best- burgers/Content?oid=2827073
San Francisco – Yard at Mission Rock: A cargotecture pop-up village erected by the San Francisco Giants near their ballpark. http://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/place/article/Urban-chic-shipping-pods-catch-on-in-Giants- 6140692.php?t=2868b8dceb3e72cb18&cmpid=twitter-premium
Downtown Long Beach Associates | Green Octopus Consulting | May 2015 15
San Diego – Quartyard in the East Village: good model for a larger space that can have a lot of commercial uses. http://www.quartyardsd.com http://www.citylab.com/design/2014/11/selling-san-diego-on-experimental-land-uses/382978/ http://www.10news.com/news/san-diegos-first-pop-up-urban-park-quartyard-opening-this-weekend-03032015 http://www.welcometosandiego.com/2015/02/quartyard-san-diego/ http://www.radlabsd.com/press/ http://eastvillagesandiego.com/?s=quartyard
San Diego – Silo in Maker’s Quarter: http://www.makersquarter.com/places http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/The-Future-is-Now-Downtown-271179461.html.
Cleveland – Small Box: Small Box is a retail project of the Historic Warehouse District Development Corporation comprised of converted shipping containers on a surface parking lot in Downtown. Opened in September 2014, the first tenants were the Cleveland Browns, Banyan Box and The Wandering Wardrobe, and others opened weeks later. A pocket park called “The Lawn” was put in next to the stores, and local artists designed seating, A Piece of Cleveland and Forest City Portage. Funded in part by: a $20,000 grant in 2013 from Enterprise Community Partners and a 2013 Nurture an Idea Award; Ohio Savings Bank, Cleveland Neighborhood Progress, and $19,388 from 181 individuals through a crowd funding campaign. Additional support for the project was provided by Weston, Inc., Downtown Cleveland Alliance, Sherwin Williams, and Sign-Lite. http://www.smallboxcle.com http://www.warehousedistrict.org/news-events.aspx?newsid=103 http://nationswell.com/cleveland-shipping-containers-jump-start-retail/#ixzz3ZBtA94gu
New York – DeKalb Market: This temporary, cargotecture outdoor shopping area was a very successful until it had to close in 2012 to make room for the planned development on the site. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/20/dining/dekalb-market-opening-in-brooklyn.html?_r=0 http://dekalbmarket.com/
Philadelphia – PHS Pop Up Garden: “A temporary outdoor escape, at 15th and South Streets, with food, beer and more.” http://www.visitphilly.com/events/philadelphia/pennsylvania-horticultural-society-pop-up-garden
Detroit: A beach island for Downtown Detroit aims to activate the Campus Martius: http://blog.archpaper.com/2013/07/a-beach-island-for-downtown-detroit-aims-to-activate-the-campus-martius/] http://www.campusmartiuspark.org/
New York – Paley Park & 520 Madison Ave.: Waterfall, ivy walls, moveable chairs, food for sale, and Berlin Wall segment. Privately owned public space. http://placemaking.pps.org/great_public_spaces/one?public_place_id=69 http://untappedcities.com/2011/09/06/paley-park-a-hidden-oasis-in-midtown/ http://www.nycgo.com/slideshows/new-york-secrets/6 Paley Park Video: https://vimeo.com/111488563
Portland – Pioneer Courthouse Square: A large public square in the middle of Downtown Portland. The coffee shop in the corner of the Square attracts scores of people throughout the day and night, keeping the Square activated and safe. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pioneer_Courthouse_Square
The Mayor of London’s initiative to create 100 pocket parks: https://www.london.gov.uk/priorities/environment/greening-london/improving-londons-parks-green-spaces/pocket- parks
Melbourne’s two-week pop-up coffee park: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/400046379375957141/ http://weburbanist.com/2013/03/07/temporary-urban-coffee-farm-grows-sells-bean-brew/
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