Hoboken’s Southwest Park sets new standards for integrating urban public space with storm protection. In a chronically-flooding lowland district, the park design weaves social spaces over layers of flood infrastructure. Rain gardens, bioswales, and permeable pavement are the visible, teachable expression of the park’s environmental mission; subsurface chambers detain the 200,000-gallon ten-year storm. Community visioning sessions set every component of the park’s program, transformed by the landscape architect into a granite amphitheater and pedestrian mall to support festivals and informal gatherings, an open lawn and playful elements to engage children, and a dog run for year-round social activation. The new Southwest Park catalyzes civic life and protects from floods, providing a model for more resilient urban communities. 

Images by: Francine Fleischer