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Mayor's Urban Design
Awards
Project Owner: City of Spokane, Spokane
Parks Department
Submitted
by: Friends of the Falls
Project Team: Moore, Iacofano Goltsman,
Inc., Michael Terrell, ASLA, Jones and Jones, Ltd., Robert Peccia,
Economic Research Associates, Thomas, Dean & Hoskins, Friends of the
Falls Board of Directors, Mayor James E. West, Spokane Park Board, Sen.
Lisa Brown, Sen. Brad Benson, Rep. Timm Ormsby, Rep. Hans Dunshee,
Spokane Tribe of Indians, Peaceful Valley, Browne’s Addition, West
Central, 2nd West Hills Neighborhood Councils, Downtown Spokane
Partnership, Avista Utilities, City of Spokane, Numerous additional
stakeholder groups, hundreds of citizen participants. |
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“Great Spokane
River Gorge” – Strategic Master Plan
Project Description:
Location The plan area includes both sides of the Spokane River from the Lower
Falls to the confluence of Hangman Creek, including High Bridge Park in
the city of Spokane, located Spokane County, Washington.
Completion Date The nominated Strategic Master Plan (SMP) was completed in March,
2005, building on a conceptual plan process completed in March, 2002.
Purpose for Project
“Nothing is so firmly impressed on the mind of the visitor to Spokane,
as regards its appearance, as the great gorge into which the river falls
near the centre of the city…any city should prize and preserve its great
landscape features, inasmuch as they give it individuality.” So began
the Olmsted Brothers’ 1913 report describing their vision of a “Gorge
Park” - the inspiration for the work and plan nominated. The priority
projects envisioned in the SMP are intended to at once activate and
preserve the area, creating a dramatic, accessible landscape that will
foster growth and needed investment in adjoining neighborhoods, improve
recreational and scenic opportunities for all residents, and help
reinforce the reputation of Spokane as an active, vibrant city blessed
with tremendous beauty.
Context
The City of Spokane exists in
large part due to the presence of the river and falls. The goals of the
SMP seek to improve and strengthen resident and regional relationships
with the Gorge area because the river and its City context are
profoundly inter-connected - the fortunes and health of each affect the
other.
Quality of Life
An improved, restored and well-maintained river corridor, accomplished
through the numerous priority projects listed in the SMP, will provide
tremendous recreational, educational, cultural, and economic
opportunities for residents now and for generations to come. The plan
envisions the Gorge developing as one of Spokane’s prime civic icons,
one as recognizable to visitors as great architectural works often are
elsewhere - but as befits our community, a scenic, naturalistic one. The
nominated project achieves a high measure of each of the “15 Qualities”
of urban design, including:
Community Enhancement - The projects envisioned in the SMP
develop Spokane’s pride and sense of place, and provide a centerpiece
for year-round civic interaction. Safety – The Gorge plan
enhances public safety primarily through greatly improved surveillance
following increased visitation and civic valuation.
Connectivity – The SMP facilitates pedestrian and non-automotive
transportation, connecting adjoining neighborhoods to the river, and in
turn to the downtown core and to new services nearby.
Green Infrastructure – The SMP promotes native habitat
restoration as its primary means of providing a counterpoint to
traditional, developed parks – much as the Olmsteds envisioned when they
designated it as the hub of Spokane’s “large park” archetype.
Regional Character – The Gorge SMP is designed to showcase the
Gorge in ways as unique and timeless as the area itself – including its
place in tribal Genesis legends, its history of industrial abuse and
neglect, and more recent efforts to restore, celebrate, and enjoy this
great, regional landmark. |
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