Bushnell Park North receives Landscape Design Award from RIASLA

The Rhode Island Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) announced the 2017-2018 Design Awards during the RIASLA Holiday & Awards Party in Pawtucket, RI on December 6th. BETA Group Inc. (BETA), along with the City of Hartford, the iQuilt Partnership, and the Greater Hartford Transit District, received a Merit Award for Bushnell Park North in Large Scale Built Design.

The park is part of a master plan initiated by the City of Hartford, iQuilt, and Suisman Urban Design to improve the livability of Downtown Hartford by improving transit and walkability. BETA was brought in by the City as the Engineer of Record to lead the design effort for the Park improvements. During the design process, the concept of a “road diet” was formalized. The road diet greatly improved the connectivity of the streets with the adjacent properties and park.

“The project does a great job of showcasing the ideal scenario for a complete street-road diet and the landscape architect’s role in transportation design,” commented one judge.

By facilitating wide-ranging stakeholder involvement, the team was able to keep the public positively informed on the design and construction progress. Today, there is a sense of pride brought by the expansion of the park and the success has enhanced the community’s view of the landscape architect profession.

Nathan Socha, a Landscape Architect at BETA who worked extensively on the project, also received a Special Recognition Award for his five years of continued dedication to RIASLA.