Wednesday, May 28, 2014

Copenhagen's Urban Public Greenspace

Question 2: Urban Public Greenspace
What functions does public urban greenspace perform in a city in general, and specifically in Copenhagen?



Ørstedsparken


Public greenspace in urban cities are associated with the intent of recreation and leisure, as well as an escape from the urban hustle and bustle. Public urban greenspaces are usually in the form of public parks situated in the middle of a metropolis. They act as an oasis to conceal and escape the urban environment.  Like many other major cities around the world, Copenhagen has a fair amount of public greenspace. 


Greenhouses of Botanisk Have


Some of Copenhagen's greenspaces manifest themselves as pocket parks -- small parks of greenery tending to be close or surrounded by concrete or urban path ways. These parks incorporate greenery as a woven component of the "asphalt jungle." They become plazas with greenery making the environment more desirable to stay. Other parks, such as Østre Anlaeg or the Botanisk Have, act more as escapes, mostly concealing the built environment surrounding it. They tend to be larger and it is easy to forget that you are in a city while in the space.
Amaliehaven

Two distinctive factors of Copenhagen greenspace are accessibility and frequency of parks. Copenhagen is also characterized by its green belt, a string of parks, which were formerly ramparts used for defense. Unlike cities such as New York with one large park, Copenhagen has many smaller parks scattered throughout it, which makes greenspace more accessible to the public because residents have only a short distance to travel from their homes. This means that they are more likely not to just use the parks but to frequent them. The effect is that it creates more of a community because same memories of the community show up at the same place. These parks also become a place for schools to take students to play, such as in the case of Østre Anlaeg. Thus a feeling of neighborhood is created from the public urban greenspace.

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