Madison Square Park Master Plan
HMWhite and Patricia McCobb collaborated on the landscape master plan and site design for the rehabilitation of one of New York City's first public parks. Commissioned by a private / public partnership -- the City Parks Foundation and neighborhood business sponsors, the landscape transformation secured the Park's future as an internationally recognized public park.
Thorough research and urban analysis led to a contemporary schematic plan grounded in park history. A complete tree inventory was conducted to chart present and future conditions, which established a preservation and landscape management program. The park's design anticipates future losses and proposes new planting design to reinforce a simplified visual and spatial organization.
Anchored by a new water basin and a restored historic fountain, the redesign reinforced the Park's central oval at its core. A permeable, stabilized crushed stone walking surface replaced trampled lawn and created a new gathering area, while promoting the health and growth conditions of numerous mature trees. A new architectural order developed a hierarchy of entrances, pathways and plaza nodes to minimize visual clutter and highlight the Park's historic landscape characteristics.