WRT recently began work on two major city park system plans. The firm has teamed with EDGE Landscape Architecture and Planning and PROS Consulting to prepare a strategic plan for Cleveland Metroparks, a regional park and natural preserve system of over 21,000 acres serving Cleveland and Cuyahoga County in Ohio.
Known as the "Emerald Necklace" because its sixteen reservations encircle the city of Cleveland, Cleveland Metroparks will celebrate its 100th anniversary in 2017. The Strategic Plan will set the direction for the park system to sustain its conservation, education, and recreation mission and its status as a leading regional asset over the next 100 years. Key issues include natural resource management in an urban environment; the role of Metroparks in serving urban populations; and its function in a regional open space and green infrastructure network that includes the Cuyahoga River and Lake Erie waterfront.
"This centennial plan will define Metroparks’ contribution to a 'green city on a blue lake'—the vision for a sustainable future for the Cleveland region," said WRT Principal David Rouse.
In addition, WRT teamed with Spurlock Poirier Landscape Architects to prepare a parks implementation plan for downtown San Diego, California. WRT’s work on the project will focus on downtown park system planning and green infrastructure as it relates to urban open space. The city of San Diego intends to create at least 52 acres of new parks and plazas in the coming years as residential growth increases in the downtown. The implementation plan will provide vital guidance for Centre City's planned open space system, with an emphasis on physical and functional linkages between residential areas, parks, neighborhood centers, and public open space.
"This is an opportunity for San Diego to develop urban parks that serve the growing downtown residential and workforce population, contributing towards building a 24/7 downtown," said WRT Principal Kathy Garcia.
