*Hinshaw, Mark
From CollabLandWiki
Mark Hinshaw’s article “River in the City” appeared in Landscape Architecture Magazine in the 2001 October issue. This article focuses on the completion of the Eastbank and Southbank riverfront parks of Portland, Oregon, but with examination it becomes apparent that he does not deliver this information without an objective. Through his narrative of the designs, Hinshaw is able to project his views on the balance between concerns for public recreation and concerns for habitat protection.
Hinshaw uses the introduction of his essay to lay out the context which these projects lay within. He illustrates an obvious admiration for the Tom McCall Park and its success as an urban space. He addresses the Eastbank Esplanade first. The project was implemented to prevent a heliport from being erected. His focus centers on the controversy between Hargreaves Associate’s master plan for public contact with the water and the priority of habitat. As a result Hargreaves original design is described more than the implemented design by Mayer-Reed, leaving the reader with an unclear understanding of the final design. Secondly he addresses the South Waterfront. This park was implemented to formally terminate the Tom McCall Park. Hinshaw stresses this works proximity to the water, “at two points along the esplanade, pathways allow people to get right down to the water’s edge” (73). He goes into greater detail about the design particulars of this project. He concludes his article by measuring South Waterfront Park up to Portland itself. He writes the park “suggests a concern for people as much as for plants and wildlife – quite a neat balancing act” (98).
The esplanades of the article aren’t an example of design interventions that would be successful for our site. However, it does offer some further exploration. Hargreaves original design of the Eastbank Esplanade had a strong sense of purpose pertaining to connection. There are possibilities to connect our site to the Fargo banks of the river, to existing pedestrian walkways, and to points of access to nearby street ends, allowing the public multiple ways of admission.
