Public parks have become a pleasantry that everyone in a major city has come to enjoy. There are two primary ways two create a public park. It can either be just a bordered off area where plants grow freely, or it can be extremely planned down to the dirt variety. Planning this out is better for a multitude of reasons. There are two reasons I will touch upon, the first is lack of space and the second is the ambience of the park.

            Cities are getting more and more crowded with each passing year. This means that the space dedicated for greenery is constantly decreasing. Two opposing examples of public parks are the styles of free grown design as done by Harriet Hemenway with the Audubon centers or closed planned design as used by Frederick Law Olmstead. Controlled urban park design ensures that the park is closed into a certain area. In a city an Audubon style park would be greatly impractical because controlling the environments territory is against the origins of the Audubon. A controlled system would ensure the area fenced off would be fully controlled and not free to expand through the city.

            One of the most critical parts of urban design is curb appeal. Audubon parks are designed to let nature do what it wants and fill its area as it pleases. They want people to enjoy the grandness of pure nature. However, the last think most cities want in their center is an ugly mess of bushes and trees and weeds. Planned urban parks would make parks attractive. There are entire fields of study dedicated to making plants look attractive. Olmstead understood this when designing areas like the Arboretum he made some main paths that because focused on openness and the blending of trees and plants together for one large grandiose image. Olmstead also included small paths that helped for individuals to have small alcoves to spend while closely surrounded by plants.

           “Prior preparation prevents a poor performance” – Mr. Tobin

This quote applies perfectly to the debate about how to design urban parks. In a bustling city even, the smallest park can help someone disconnect from the business of the city. This is not something that naturally happens in nature and thus preemptive planning would ensure that this public space is perfect.