start-with-the-park

70 Start with the park
5. Legibility
‘Cities need hidden spaces and exposed spaces,
rough spaces and smooth spaces, loud spaces
and silent spaces – spaces where people remember,
experience, contest, appropriate, get scared, make
things, lose things, and generally become themselves.’
What are we scared of? (CABE Space 2005)
Different people interpret green spaces
in different ways. Space should be
designed to allow for choice, play and
experimentation in how it is used and
experienced. The design of the public
realm should reflect a balance between
the need to manage the risks associated
with a more stimulating environment
and the need to create different types of
spaces that allow for different kinds of
behaviour and demands.
A vista – a view past a series of
landmarks – can help people orient
themselves. Routes through a space
can be designed to emphasise a series
of views, providing a pleasant sense of
variety to anyone moving through it. A
good choice of planting can ensure that
these views change throughout the year.
Green Flag Awards recognise clear and
appropriate signs and information inside
and outside the site.
Legibility – ease of understanding – is particularly
important where safety and ease of movement
are paramount. Such spaces might incorporate
pathways, landmarks and gateways to help people
orient themselves