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Research ArticleArticles

Parks as Mirrors of Community

Design Discourse and Community Hopes for Parks in East St. Louis

Laura Lawson
Landscape Journal, March 2007, 26 (1) 116-133; DOI: https://doi.org/10.3368/lj.26.1.116
Laura Lawson
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Abstract

While imprinted by past social values and design ideals, parks evolve according to changing expectations and socioeconomic and racial change in the surrounding community. Design discourse and community processes both call on park design to reflect community history, expand recreational and social resources, and serve as a catalyst for community revitalization. However, community concerns to develop implementable designs in light of alternative funding strategies, volunteerism, and phased development remains largely unaddressed by the design community. Focusing primarily on urban African-American contexts in East St. Louis, Illinois, this paper outlines three non-exclusive perspectives that shape discourse on race in park planning and design: recreational use and preferences according to ethnicity and race; community development, through both grass-roots activism and professional participation; and form-seeking design approaches inspired by community history and everyday practices of marginalized groups. These three perspectives of contemporary discourse are then counterbalanced with an applied perspective based on current park revitalization efforts that are being undertaken by community groups in East St. Louis, Illinois.

  • Parks
  • African American
  • community development
  • participatory planning and design

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Landscape Journal
Vol. 26, Issue 1
20 Mar 2007
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Parks as Mirrors of Community
Laura Lawson
Landscape Journal Mar 2007, 26 (1) 116-133; DOI: 10.3368/lj.26.1.116

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Parks as Mirrors of Community
Laura Lawson
Landscape Journal Mar 2007, 26 (1) 116-133; DOI: 10.3368/lj.26.1.116
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More in this TOC Section

  • A Tribute to Robert B. Riley 1931–2019
  • Fluid or Fixed? Processes that Facilitate or Constrain a Sense of Inclusion in Participatory Schoolyard and Park Design
  • Diversity and Inclusion by Design: A Challenge for Us All
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Keywords

  • parks
  • African American
  • community development
  • participatory planning and design
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