RDG in the Media: Evolving Park Design for Inclusive, Sustainable Communities
In a recent Recreation Management feature, RDG's Scott Crawford shares insights on how parks are being designed to serve more people, with greater flexibility and long-term resilience.
As communities evolve and outdoor public spaces take on new significance, landscape architects are reimagining park systems to be more responsive to their natural surroundings, community priorities and long-term sustainability. In a recent Recreation Management Magazine article, RDG Landscape Architect and Principal Scott Crawford, PLA, ASLA, LEED AP, joined other industry professionals to discuss how today’s park designs are balancing innovation with intentionality, offering insight into how evolving community needs and funding models are reshaping both the form and function of parks.
Crawford emphasized that parks can no longer afford to be single-use spaces, referencing the shift away from the traditional wagon-wheel layout of ballfields in favor of newer designs that allow for overlapping functions that enable everything from soccer and rugby to lacrosse and flag football to share the same open green space.
Crawford also addressed the evolving landscape of park funding, noting a significant move toward public-private partnerships. Whereas public parks were once funded largely through municipal or state budgets, today's projects often rely on donors or nonprofits to contribute (and sometimes shape) what gets built. This model, Crawford added, is particularly well-suited to dense, urban areas and requires experience navigating complex, community-centered design collaborations.