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Sustainable Olmsted

Posted by: Tim Halbur

23 December 2009 - 10:00am

Vandergrift, PA was a company town designed by Frederick Law Olmsted in 1895. Today, the town is looking back to Olmsted's original plan to improve the town's sustainability.

"The town still uses Olmsted's original layout, which some believe is reason enough to visit Vandergrift. '[Olmsted] designed Vandergrift, 35 miles northeast of Pittsburgh, with no right angles, instead following the curves of the river. He also used curving paths to blur movement among pedestrians and hedges to buffer commercialism. Street corners and the buildings on them were rounded. Parks dotted the hilly landscape, and the town was walkable.'"

Full Story: To Create Sustainable Community, Town Returns to 1895 Olmsted Plan
Source: ASLA's The Dirt blog, December 22, 2009
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The impact of community design and amenities on community engagement is substantial. Respondents with a lower overall grade for their communities were also found to be less engaged in their communities, as measured by participation in social activities, relationships with neighbors, volunteer work, and civic participation such as voting.
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