PL656 Mini-Studio: Moore Street Project Open Space and Parks
Jesmarie Soto
Jesun Lee
A. Introduction
Definition of Park and Open Space
Open Space is defined in the broadest of terms as space that is not used for physical structures such as buildings; in other words, it is the counterpart of development. It may be air, land, or water – located in the “big city” or in the open countryside, remote from urban development. It may be an active recreation area like Coney Island in New York, or a vista of the
San Francisco Bay from Russian Hill, a large national forest like the George Washington
National Forest in West Virginia, a balcony in Marina Towers in Chicago, or just a tree-lined suburban street. It may be publicly or privately owned; it may be owned in full or may be only partial rights or easement. Open Space can be used for recreation, water supply, tourism, economic development, resource development, or amenity. How it is built into the environment and what functions are emphasized is highly relative to the needs and the opportunities of the surrounding community.
What is done with open spaces will obviously affect the character of development and likewise affect open spaces. Open space must be seen not just as space remaining from development or green areas for parks on land use maps, but also as an essential element determining the character and quality of the urban environment.
There are basically three functions which open space serves: (1) It can meet positive human needs – both physically and psychologically – in recreation amenities; (2) It can enhance and protect the resource base - the air, water, soil, plants – and, in turn, the animals; and (3) It can affect economic development decisions like tourism, development patterns, employment, real estate values, etc. The classification of Parks and Open Space is found in Table 1 at the end of this paper.
Study Area
The study area for Parks and Open Space around the Moore Street Market is based on ¼ mile and ½ mile radius. Passive open spaces and active open spaces within the specified study area were inventoried. Passive open spaces are characterized by non-physical activity such as sunbathing; reading and sitting, while active open spaces consist of physical activities including jogging and sports.
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PL656 Mini-Studio: Moore Street Project Open Space and Parks
Thelma Martinez Playground
Sternberg Playground
PS 196 Playground
PS 168 Playground
(Bartlett Playground)
Harmony (Arlington) Square
Zindel Park
De Hostos Playground
PS 318 Playground
Ramirez Playground
Bushwick Green
Moore Street Market
PS 168 Playground
(Bartlett Playground) Bushwick Playground & Pool
Broadway Triangle Park
PS 168 Playground
(Bartlett Playground)
PS120 Playground
(Garden Playground)
PS 59 Sumner Houses Playground
Greenstreet
<Picture A>. Existing Parks and Open Space by radius
B. Existing Park & Open Space by location criteria (1/4-mile, 1/2-mile)
The inventory of Park and Open Space consisted of neighborhood/Community parks, school parks or playgrounds, greenways, community gardens and recreation facilities within the study area. Both private and public spaces were included. The Inventory lists Open space according to the relevant mile radius from the market. The owner or oversight agency, size and facility type were taken from the Community District profiles of CD1, CD2, and CD3 (2002-
2003) found at the nyc.gov website. Active and passive spaces are rated on a scale of high, moderate or low depending on the amenities and overall purpose of the open space. We were unable to find the exact capacity of active and passive spaces within an individual open space.
The condition and use level of each property was noted. Table 2 and 3 provides the inventory of existing Park and Open Space in the study area. The total amount of parks and open space found within the ½ mile study area was 24.
The ¼ mile study area includes 5 Open Spaces; One of these being a Greenstreet, which is a landscaped traffic triangle and the other a community garden. There are five New York
City Housing Authority (NYCHA) properties which contain private playgrounds and open space.
These properties are located closest to the Moore Street Market. There is an opportunity to create a relationship between these properties and the market. The ¼ mile study area contains mostly active spaces in good/fair condition with a light-moderate user level. Only the Bushwick
Playground exhibited heavy user level by children.
The ½ mile study area contains 16 Open Spaces, including a garden and greenstreet.
There are several NYCHA properties with parks and open space located within the ½ mile radius.
However, they were not inventoried since they serve as private spaces and do not maintain a relationship with Moore Street market because of the distance. The Parks and Open Space inventoried are also highly active spaces with an overall good condition. However, there are 3 parks that are in poor condition. According to the New Yorkers for Parks Report Card on Parks,
Martinez playground, Charlie’s Place and Sternberg Park are rated the worst performers in
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PL656 Mini-Studio: Moore Street Project Open Space and Parks
Brooklyn.
C. Open Space Ratio
According to the NYC Department of City Planning, the citywide median Open Space
Ratio is 1.5 acres per 1,000 residents. The optimal planning goal for the DCP is 2.5 acres per
1,000 residents with 2.0 acres of active and 0.5 acres of passive open space.
To compute the Open Space Ratio for the study area, the total acreage of open space is divided by the total population for the study area and then multiplied by 1,000. The OSR pertaining to active and passive spaces was not computed. The total population was obtained from the Census 2000 Summary File 3 (SF 3)- sample data. Census tracts with at least 50 per cent of its area located in the study area boundary were used to calculate the population. Open Space that is not eligible for passive or active use was not included in the total Open Space figure. New
York City Housing Authority properties and greenstreets were also eliminated from the OSR computation.
The ¼ mile study area was located in census tracts 487, 489, and 491. The total population within this area is 10,053. The total Open Space is 2.323 acres. The OSR for the ¼ mile study area is 0.23 acres per 1,000 residents. This does not meet the median or optimal planning goal of the Department of City Planning.
The following census tracts in Kings County were used to find the OSR for the ½ mile study area: 257, 285.01, 285.02, 391, 483,487,489,491,493,505,507,509, and 511 [Table 3]. For the ½ mile study area, the total population is 39,380 and the total Open Space is 19.573 acres.
Therefore, the OSR for this study area is 0.50 acres per 1,000 residents, which is less than the median OSR of 1.5 acres per 1,000 residents.
The OSR is inadequate for the study area. Open Space and Parks are severely underrepresented in both the ¼ mile and ½ mile study area. The OSR for both study areas are
1/6 th and 1/3 rd , respectively, of the median OSR. It is necessary that the study area increase the number of Open Spaces and parks available to the publics.
D. Conclusions
The Open Space and Parks surrounding the Moore Street Market are inadequate for this high residential and commercial neighborhood. Most of the Open Spaces and Parks within both study areas are predominately active spaces. It is necessary to have a high degree of Open Space as active, however there is a need for more passive spaces. The existing Open Space had a light use level. The use level may indicate that the Open Space is not meeting the needs of the community, whether it is lack of passive space, location, or facilities within the park.
Open Space is vital to the economic development, social and physical health of a community. Open Space is often neglected and underrepresented in communities. The lack of
Open Space is evident in the Moore Street Market study area. The Open Space Ratio for the ¼ mile study area and ½ mile study area were 0.23 acres per 1,000 residents and 0.50 acres per
1,000 residents, respectively. To maintain a good quality of life, communities must meet the citywide median Open Space ratio of 1.5 acres per 1,000 residents or 2.5 acres per 1,000 residents.
The City must create a comprehensive Open Space plan that can meet the goals set by the New York City Planning Department.
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PL656 Mini-Studio: Moore Street Project Open Space and Parks
Table 1: Classification of Park & Open Space
Classification General Description Location Criteria Size Criteria
Application of LOS
Yes
Mini Park
Neighborhood Park
School Park
Community Park
Large Urban Park
Natural Resource Area
Greenways
Used to address limited isolated, or unique recreational needs.
Neighborhood park remains the basic unit of the park system and serves as the recreational and social focus of the neighborhood. Focus is on informal active and passive recreation.
Depending on circumstances, combining parks with school sites can fulfill the space requirements for other classes of parks, such as neighborhood, community, sports complex, and special use.
Serves broader purpose than neighborhood park. Focus is on meeting community-based recreation needs, as well as preserving unique landscapes and open spaces.
Large urban parks serve a broader purpose than community parks and are used when community and neighborhood parks are not adequate to serve the needs of the community. Focus is on meeting community-based recreational needs, as well as preserving unique landscapes and open spaces.
Lands set aside for preservation of significant natural resources, remnant landscapes, open space, and visual aesthetics and buffering.
Effectively tie park system components together to form a continuous park environment.
Consolidates heavily programmed athletic fields and associated facilities to larger and fewer sites strategically located throughout the community.
Less than a 1/4 mile distance in residential setting.
1/4-to 1/2-mile distance and uninterrupted by nonresidential roads or other physical barriers.
Determined by location of school district property.
Determined by the quality and suitability of the site. Usually serves two or more neighborhoods and 1/2-to
3-mile distance.
Determined by the quality and suitability of the site. Usually serves the entire community.
Resource availability and opportunity.
Resource availability and opportunity.
Strategically located community-wide facilities.
Between 2,500 sq. ft. and 1 acre.
5 acres is considered minimum size. 5 to 10 acres is optimal.
Variable, depends on function.
As needed to accommodate desired uses. Usually between 30 to 50 acres.
As needed to accommodate desired uses. Usually a minimum of 50 acres, 75 or more acres being optimal.
Variable.
Variable.
Yes
Yes, but should not count school only use.
Yes.
Yes
No
No
Sports Complex
Determined by projected demand. Usually a minimum of 25 acres, 40 to
80 acres being optimal.
Yes
Special Use
Private
Park/Recreation
Facility
Covers a broad range of parks and recreation facilities oriented toward single-purpose use.
Parks and recreation facilities that are privately owned yet contribute to the public park and recreation system.
Variable, depends on specific use.
Variable, depends on specific use.
Variable.
Variable.
Depends on type of use.
Depends on type of use.
Note: LOS = level of service
Source: James D. Mertes and James R. Hall, Washington, DC: National Recreational and Park Association (1996), pp.
94-95. Copyright 1996 National Recreation and Park Association
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PL656 Mini-Studio: Moore Street Project Open Space and Parks
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PL656 Mini-Studio: Moore Street Project Open Space and Parks
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PL656 Mini-Studio: Moore Street Project
Table 4: Total population for ½ mile study area
Census Tract
Census Tract 257, Kings County
Census Tract 285.01, Kings County
Census Tract 285.02, Kings County
Census Tract 389, Kings County
Census Tract 391, Kings County
Census Tract 483, Kings County
Census Tract 487, Kings County
Census Tract 489, Kings County
Census Tract 491, Kings County
Census Tract 493, Kings County
Census Tract 505, Kings County
Census Tract 507, Kings County
Census Tract 509, Kings County
Census Tract 511, Kings County
US. Census Bureau, Census 2000
Result contains 14 rows.
Open Space and Parks
Total population
4,020
5,453
7,681
4,211
694
1,698
3,904
2,089
1,443
2,858
2,311
1,411
1,027
580
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PL656 Mini-Studio: Moore Street Project Open Space and Parks
Reference
• William I. Goodman, Eric C. Freund, Principles and Practice of Urban Planning, The municipal management series
• Kelly, Eric D., Community Planning: an introduction to the comprehensive plan, Island press, 2000
• Downtown Brooklyn Development Final EIS, Chapter 5, 5-1
• US. Census Bureau, www.census.gov
• NYC Department of Parks and Recreation, www. nycgovparks.org
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