Central Park New York - Essay Example

Central Park New York Central Park is a recreational public facility and the first urbanlandscape park based in Manhattan, New York. Its establishment came up first in 1857 on a city-owned land of 843 acres, which translates to 3.41km2. Its design took more than ten years to build, and the city had to use ten million dollars in building it. The reason for the building of the park was that, the Americans tried to refute the claims from European states that they did not have sense of civic duty, and gratitude towards cultural views, but instead had misplaced priorities driven by individualistic egos in expense of the public interest. The people of New York started airing their voices on the need of a recreational and a public park. It took the emphasis by a poet and an editor of Evening Post (now the New York post), William Cullen Bryant and an early architect by the name Andrew Jackson Downing. The two followed in demanding how important people of New York needed a public park by 1844. They felt the people of New York needed a lavish scenery similar to Bois de Boulogne in Paris France or Hyde Park based in London, England. It took long years of debate and disagreements about the location on where the park was to be erected before the actual building of the park finally started in 1857. The park’s superintendent Fredrick Law Olmsted and an architect Calvert Vaux won the competition on design to enable them with the expansion of the park under a plan called Greensward Plan. The park’s construction followed the same year and went on through up to the civil war in America until its completion in 1873. The Greensward Plan consisted of designs with 36 bridges, all of which Vaux designed, from a span of the Manhattan schist or granite and an iron cast which is lacy neo-gothic. A number of individuals assumed the responsibility of executing the plan these were, Jacob Wrey Mould an architect, Ignaz Anton Pilat a master gardener, George Waring an engineer and Andrew Hasell Green a politician, mandated with the responsibility of helping Vaux and Olmsted. After winning the contest, they went ahead and acquired the 843 acres of land in the city of New York at the Manhattan center, which is two and a half miles away from 59th and 106th street, and half a mile away from Fifth and Eighth Avenue. This led to the eviction of about 1600 people living in the swampy and rocky terrain as the legal inhabitants of the area. Other buildings brought down included a convent, a school, plants, shrubs, and the people residing in Seneca Village. Mostly African-Americans with an estimated 2700 million people in the village inhabited the area with three churches and a school. The members of this village became scattered all over the place and as a result, it led to their community became extinct in that area. The city compensated the people who owned land with an estimated average of $700 per lot of land. However, many of the people residing in the area found the compensation package to be below the property value they surrendered. The city planners chose the place because, of its unsuitable terrain that could not withstand nor allow the erection of commercial buildings. The terrain was rocky with swamps that to be turned into lakes, rivers and a reservoir for the old city. The ancient sculptures underwent improvement, enhancement and eradication to enable the creation of the park in accordance to the style of public grounds in Europe, and an appealing appearance of the countryside nature. To this extent, the planners Olmsted and Vaux came up with a plan, which included four transverse roads, which enabled the carrying of town traffic below the level of the park. The architectural designs restrictions stated that, they were to be minimal. Only four buildings was the only one found in the original plan of the park. They proceeded to adhere to the plan of the park by choosing the materials used for building and made sure that the integration of the original plan was as natural as possible, in order to fit in the landscape of the surrounding and ensure that no mistakes occur during the start of the buildings. The plan adhered to, ensured that no problems occurred in the coming of the building. The work began under the supervision and direction of the Chief Architect where, thousands of people from different nationalities inclusive of, Irish, Germans and English people who worked as laborers ten hours a day, with a pay between a dollar and a dollar fifty a day. Upon the park’s completion in the 1858’s winter, the first area became accessible to the public. During the same year in December, skating by the people of New York had already started on the South Ramble of the twenty-acre lake. In 1863, the completion of the park started, with new designs on the landscape and buildings erected on the 106th and 110the streets respectively. However, they started facing new budget concerns, which proved to be tight making the new comptroller, Andrew Green to cut down on cost and allowed for only less labor force, giving it an appearance that seemed more tamed. In the period 1860-1873, most of the complex structures of the park reached its completion and it was fair to state the park’s finishing had reached a substantial level. The construction design built used a combination of modern with ageless and up to date tools. Unskilled laborers used wielding shovels in moving wheeled tree machines. The park’s work display was in drawings and photographic pictures. In the same period, the transportation topsoil of about 18,500 cubic yards from New Jersey got finished. The reason for the soil transportation was New York’s soil in the park was not suitable in sustaining the trees and shrubs proposed in the Greensward Plan. During its official completion, loads and tones of materials had been removed out of the park inclusive of soil and rocks. They then transplanted an estimated four million trees, shrubs and plants of about 1500 different species. After ten years of the park’s completion, it was now clear whom the park purpose was to serve. It was located uptown within the city’s working class population and it was a walking distance. The services offered such as the train fare proved expensive to most of the employees and most of them could not afford. In the 1860’s the park restriction remained accessible to the wealthy people and only those able to afford. During the afternoons, the paths of the park were with expensive carriages, which was a clear symbol of the status of the people in the park. Women at most went there for socialization purposes during the weekends or afternoons, after which their husbands joined them later with carriages for the organized concerts. The middle class society went for concerts on Saturdays afternoons. As the twentieth century neared, the lower reservoir drainage of the park turned into a Great Lawn because of the city people. Despite disputes by some conservationists, the first playground in the city park came up in 1926 with complete jungle gyms and slides. The conservationists argued that the park served as an escape for people living in the urban suburbs. The playground became a success and mostly used by children belonging to middle and working class parents. In 1927, a person by the name Hecksher gave the first playground, which was well equipped in the southeastern meadow. Towards the 1940s, the park was an accommodated facility for more than twenty playgrounds. Robert Moses was the director of the park at that time and under him the park became less and less a facility of the rich people. The New York Population grew bigger in number forcing them to expand to suit the needs of the growing crowd. As time progressed, ball games started in the park with signs denoting “Please Keep of the Grass’ erected. By 1950s to 1960s, private investors donated a skating rink, the laser rink and a swimming pool, boathouses and a chess and checkers section. Mayor Moses also introduced ball fields, permanent on nature in the Great Lawn in order to include neighbors and interested teams in participating. In the 1960s, through the go ahead of the Mayor John Lindsay and two park commissioners, Thomas Hoving and August Hecksher, they introduced the performance of concerts and other be-ins initiatives by various artists in most cases, which rock artists dominated. This was to show the urban culture was reviving and countering the already past time events. The park usually accommodates up to thirty-five million visitors on annual basis, and it is the most visited urban park in the United States. The maintenance of the park is by the Central Park Conservancy. The Central Park Conservancy is a private and non-profit organization founded in 1980, through the efforts of civic and dedicated philanthropic leaders. Their main aim was to rescue the Central Park from succumbing to decline in the 1970s. They fought in restoring the heritage and splendor of the first urban park ever built. New York City Department of Parks and Recreation contract the conservancy, with the president of the conservancy serving as an ex officio Administrator of the park. In 1998, the City of New York and Conservancy entered into a management agreement, cementing an 18-year public-private relationship they initially had. The partnership got even strong when an additional eight years ensued in their agreement. The conservancy is the official supervisor and manager of the park and mandated on the daily activities in which maintenance and the park’s operation are the core issues. Currently, the conservancy employs the operations and maintenance staff of the park who are about 90%. The conservancy contributes 85 percent of the Central’s Park income and revenue of $45.8million on yearly basis. This is possible through investment opportunities and fundraising activities. Apart from the contribution made by New York City to the conservancy for the services offered, they offer lighting; Park drives maintenance and the enforcement in the city. The policy control is under the New York City Department of Parks and Creation. They issue permits to any event-taking place inside the Park’s premises and offers 10 percent of services from their staff. Since it began, the conservancy has enabled an investment close to more than $600million accredited to the Central Park. Private Sector inclusive of individuals, corporations and foundations, helped raised more than $470 million of which more than $110 million was a contribution by the City. The Conservancy has also overseen the management plan to restore the park, the management of the capital restoration of the facilities and landscapes of the park, creation of programs for visitors and anyone offering voluntary services and the setting up of excellent standards to take care of the park. The conservancy helped in the transformation of the park into an urban model designed park in the world. The conservancy of the park has been in the forefront in providing technical knowledge and management in fostering natural expansion of other parks. In 1986, the conservancy through its first fundraising event, dubbed Campaign for the Central Park Conservancy, helped in the restoration of facilities such as Bethesda Terrace, Grand Army Plaza, Shakespeare Garden, Cedar Hill and the Southern part in the terrain of the park. The projects of 1990, concentrated I in the building of the northern side of the park, leading to Harlem Meer’s restoration. The conservancy’s efforts again transformed the west side landscapes comprising of the Great lawn and North Meadow. In 2005, through another campaign dubbed Campaign for Central Park that funded the restoration of Metropolitan Museum Landscapes of the Harlem Meer Art, situated around the 22-acre lake. The work of the Conservancy is to set programs that have taken advantage of sources of the Central Park considered invaluable. Each year the conservancy has provided education, recreation and other volunteer programs to enlighten the public on issues of the park. The Central Park has plenty of attraction sites starting from, historical monuments, statues, bridges of beautiful kind and an attractive scene of the nature. Some of the parts in the Park are rugged with forest-like nature, while the remaining parts have been trimmed and polished to beautiful shrubs and flowers. The park has eighteen gates on the entrance sections with each bearing its own name. The gates are ornate in nature that is Merchants’ gate at the Columbus Circle, Vanderbilt Gate and Engineers’ gate. Most of the people visiting the Park enter through the Scholars’ gate situated at the Grand Army Plaza. It is near the Fifth Avenue and paves way to a beautiful pond, which is the Parks most attractive scenery. On the west, side of the zoo located in the Park is The Diary a cottage like facility built in 1870. The location of the Diary is at a former pasture, a place used by the cows for grazing in order to provide milk for the children in the City, hence the name. The Bethesda Terrace is a mal like structure, lined with elm trees in America and is the Park’s Architectural highlights. Covered by a central arcade with two stairs on its flanks leading to the plaza, it has a fountain, put there in 1873, and has its statue called the Angel of Waters. Two Statues are near the pond a place very popular with the children. On the west is the statue of Hans Christian Andersen, while a statue of Alice in Wonderland and her friend is on the North of the Museum. Other minor sculptures of the Central Park include a Sheep Meadow and Great Lawn, Metropolitan Museum and Cleopatra’s Needle, the Strawberry Fields, the Bow Bridge and ramble, Belvedere Castle, Shakespeare Garden, Conservatory Garden and a Discovery Center named Charles A. Dana. Works Cited Godwin, Laura, and Barry Root. Central Park serenade. New York: HarperCollins, 2002. Print. Heckscher, Morrison H.. Creating Central Park. New York, N.Y.: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2008. Print. Jackson, Kenneth T. The encyclopedia of New York City. New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 1995. Print. Kinkead, Eugene. Central Park, 1857-1995: the birth, decline, and renewal of a national treasure New York: Norton, 1990. Print. Miller, Sara Cedar. Central Park, an American masterpiece: a comprehensive history of the nation's first urban park. New York: H.N. Abrams: 2003. Print. Mordden, Ethan. How long has this been going on? New York: Villard Books, 1995. Print. Rogers, Elizabeth Barlow, and John Berendt Rebuilding Central Park: a management and restoration plan. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 1987. Print. Rosenzweig, Roy, and Elizabeth Blackmar The park and the people: a history of Central Park. Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 1992. Print. Rosenzweig, Roy, and David P. Thelen The presence of the past: popular uses of history in American life. New York: Columbia University Press, 1998. Print. The WPA guide to New York City: the Federal Writers' Project guide to 1930s New York. New York: Pantheon Books, 1982. Print. Read More