Public Space

Cities everywhere are undergoing somewhat of a green renaissance, with public spaces and linear parks being built around existing infrastructure and buildings. In Düsseldorf, Germany, however, the buildings themselves are being greened, with hedged façades and a green roof that forms a park.

A new enclave in Tokyo, Japan, will soon offer places to live, work and relax, as well as act as a gateway to the rest of the city. Added to the existing tower at Toranomon Hills will be three more towers and integrated transported facilities, all linked by an elevated park.

Students and residents in Copenhagen, Denmark, will soon have an intriguing new waterside environment for education and recreation. The Nordhavn Islands are three circular manmade islands on the coast that will cater for learning, watersports and events, as well as host a new vegetation environment.

Vancouver is following the lead of other world cities by repurposing a disused rail line to create a new walking and cycling route. The Arbutus Greenway project will provide a continuous route for pedestrians and cyclists from Milton Street to 1st Avenue.

Following an international architecture competition, Japanese firm Nikken Sekkei has won the opportunity to redevelop a stretch of railway line that spans the breadth of Singapore into a green corridor.

A new park in London may be dwarfed by some of the city's larger and more grandiose green spaces, but it still provides a place for Londoners to take a break. The Tooley Street Fresh Air Square, which takes up just two car parking spaces​, has been installed in the London Bridge area of the city.

Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) has unveiled a masterplan to reshape Pittsburgh's Lower Hill district. The project is set to create over a thousand new homes, increase available public space, and improve connectivity for cyclists and pedestrians.

Toronto, Canada, is to become home to a new linear park that will make use of existing infrastructure. Project: Under Gardiner will be built beneath a section of the city's Gardiner Expressway. There will be new walking and cycling routes, as well as recreational and cultural spaces.

Recently, we've seen public parks created – or planned for creation – on old railways, in old trolley terminals, on streets, bridges and piers. A new park in London, however, is more unusual than all of these. It's built inside the structure of an old gasholder.

Plans have been unveiled to reclaim a road in Mexico City from cars. Avenida Chapultepec is one of the city's busy main arteries, but is clogged with cars and splits the city. The historical road will feature an elevated park with green spaces and a layout tailored for those on foot or bike.

The residents of New York's South Bronx suffer from relatively high levels of diabetes, childhood asthma and pedestrian injuries. A new initiative called the Haven Project is planning to use green open spaces to combat these issues.

A community space, garden and kitchen in London is feeding its customers with food grown in skips (aka dumpsters). The Skip Garden is designed to be easily moved around unused development spaces. It is built with recycled materials and employs organic farming techniques.