Rodney Reservoir Community Design Charrette
Many thanks to the more than 80 residents, community organizations, and other partners who participated in a community-engaged visioning process to consider possible concepts and generate preliminary design ideas for the future Rodney Reservoir Park. This opportunity was thanks to a new partnership with University of Delaware and Living Lab Research Group faculty Anna Wik, RLA, ASLA and Dr. Nina David funded by the Wilmington Partnership.
CHARRETTE RESULTS
See Photos from Each Session and Watch the Final Presentation
Part I: Tuesday, June 13th
Community members engaged in brainstorming activities and provide input on plans and case studies presented by fellows.
Part II: Thursday, June 22nd
Fellows developed drafts of three potential concepts and presented them to the community for feedback, discussion and revision.
Part III, Tuesday, June 27th
What is a charrette?
A charrette is an intensive design process over multiple sessions that brings together diverse stakeholders to become acquainted with the historical and cultural importance of a particular site, to learn about the benefits of community greening, and to brainstorm and evaluate design concepts for a site's future use.
This process was a chance for our community to learn about the history of the Rodney Reservoir, concepts in urban greenspace design such as adaptive reuse, and the myriad of ways that urban green spaces benefit communities–from creating opportunities for social connections and enhancing biodiversity to mitigating the urban heat island effect and contributing to improved physical and mental health outcomes.
Most importantly, these charrette sessions were an opportunity for the community to share input about the features and amenities they would like to see in a future park and to voice other priorities and concerns.
As a result of the process, we now have some design concepts and visualizations that we will take to the next phase of the visioning and planning process with City officials.
The Rodney Reservoir Community Design Charrette took place over three days. Many thanks to everyone who participated!