Preferred Citation: Attoe, Wayne, and Donn Logan. American Urban Architecture: Catalysts in the Design of Cities. Berkeley:  University of California Press,  c1989. http://ark.cdlib.org/ark:/13030/ft5k4006v5/

 
5— The Emerging Character of American Cities

Nature in the City

The purposeful provision of natural areas in city centers has been justified on the grounds of health and aesthetics, but it can also be argued for on social and economic grounds. Park or boulevard frontage increases land value; green spaces attract people and cause

figure

120.
The Forecourt (Ira Keller) Fountain
(top) and the Lovejoy Fountain
(bottom), in conjunction with a small
park (center), create a pedestrian link
that unites sections of Portland.

― 154 ―

figure

121.
Site plan, Lovejoy Fountain. Lawrence Halprin, landscape architect.

them to linger. Early European examples of nature in the city were private squares associated with upper-class housing developments and public parks to provide relief from crowded living and working conditions. Corporate gardens and vest-pocket parks are recently introduced variations. The palette of design ideas for bringing nature into the city continues to broaden.

5— The Emerging Character of American Cities
 

Preferred Citation: Attoe, Wayne, and Donn Logan. American Urban Architecture: Catalysts in the Design of Cities. Berkeley:  University of California Press,  c1989. http://ark.cdlib.org/ark:/13030/ft5k4006v5/