Dickinson Memorial Park Playground - Billie Cohen Ltd.
Billie Cohen, Landscape, Design, New York, NY
Billie Cohen, Landscape, Design, New York, NY, garden, estate, residential, campus, public, community, playground, penthouse, rooftop, pool, invisible edge, steep slope, house, dock, views, terraced, architecture, patio, hanging, classic shingle style
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Dickinson Memorial Park Playground

The mission of the restoration of Dickinson Memorial Park was to transform a typical suburban recreational park into an environmental learning center, linking existing natural features and newly incorporated habitats with family recreation. The tennis court, softball field, skatepark, playground, and community pavilion for picnics, events, and concerts were immersed in the native habitat gardens and wetlands. The park acts as a base for innovative site programming that raises environmental “literacy” and awareness to the healing and restorative power of nature.

 

Portions of the wetlands ecosystem running through the entire park, connecting to trout streams and other vital waterways in the region, had been partially “filled in” through the years. The environmental significance and function of these wetlands to provide wildlife habitats for bird populations and native plants had been lost. As a result, visitors to the park had never been given the opportunity to experience a deeper connection to the park’s potential biodiversity and its relevancy to the greater ecosystem.

 

The playground, which Billie Cohen ltd. completed in 2014, is surrounded by butterfly habitat gardens, secluded meditation seating, overhead arbors, and butterfly hoop houses. Children now have free access to a previously buried stream that was exposed and restored, connecting the adjacent wetland system and streams to the park.

Location: Newtown, CT