In celebration of National Park & Recreation month, Milone & MacBroom (MMI) is looking back fondly on our award-winning work to create safe and inviting outdoor places for communities to enjoy. MMI is a nationally-recognized leader in the planning and design of public parks and playgrounds. We are proud of our firm’s ability to blend the creativity of landscape architecture with the sensitivity of water resources and environmental planning and the application of sound engineering principles. Over the past several years, the firm has been responsible for successfully delivering countless park projects to communities across the Eastern Seaboard including soccer fields, basketball and tennis courts, and playgrounds. We hope you’ll enjoy this overview of our designers’ favorite parks:
Cos Cob Waterfront Park | Greenwich, CT
The Town of Greenwich envisioned a transformed former Cos Cob power plant site into a flourishing public park that offered both passive and active recreational amenities. The majestic 13-acre site overlooks the scenic Cos Cob Harbor & Mianus River, with immediate access to the Cos Cob Metro-North Train station.
MMI, along with project team partners, guided the project plans to remediate and redevelop this prominent site into a public park from master planning through regulatory permitting, construction documentation, and construction administration. The master planning process developed and considered numerous uses, types and sizes of athletic field areas, facility programming, passive recreational areas, tidal wetland restoration and pavilion shelters. The design included a full-size multipurpose synthetic surface athletic field on the waterfront; a ½-mile waterfront loop trail system; and a state-of-the-art, fully-accessible interactive playscape area.
Balliet Park Improvements | Springfield, MA
MMI, through our on-call contract with the City of Springfield, provided a full range of design services from master planning through construction administration for the renovation of this former school playground and neighborhood park located on 6.5 acres within the Pine Point neighborhood of the City. This truly “Neighborhood” park renovation project included a new 3,600-square-foot Splash Park; renovation of the little league diamond; expansion of the multi-use natural grass recreational field; a new basketball court; new playground and swing set; new picnic areas; and improved signage, visibility, and accessibility throughout the park.
This project was primarily funded through a Parkland Acquisition & Renovations (PARC) grant. Due to the extreme time constraints of the grant, MMI was asked to prepare complete construction drawings and bid documents in a one-month time frame. We completed the task and provided periodic construction observation services through construction.
Cleveland Park | Spartanburg, SC
Cleveland Park was constructed during the “City Beautiful” movement with funding from the Cleveland family. Over the years, the park had fallen into disrepair due to extensive use and lack of funding. The challenge for reconstruction of the park was to restore its historic identity while accommodating the recreational needs of the nearby disadvantaged neighborhood and providing a venue for citywide cultural events.
The project saw the restoration of the historic landscape and the train that carried children around the playground. The pond, which had been the focal point of the landscape, was restored with a promenade along one edge and the introduction of a gazebo on the island that remained in the pond. The most significant new feature was an events building designed to reflect the historic craftsman architecture of the period and now hosts receptions and other community functions.
As landscape architects and engineers, it was particularly gratifying to see how popular Cleveland Park has become since it reopened. Fortunately, Spartanburg County Parks continues to fund the maintenance of the park, including updates to the playground equipment and restoration of the stream following recent flooding. Cleveland Park remains a beautiful city park.