An ecological look at New York

Land Studio’s Assistant Landscape Architect Matthew Reece, has reviewed the book Gotham Unbound by Ted Steinberg.

The book tells the 400-year story of how hundreds of square miles of marshlands were developed to become home to the people of New York.

Matthew said: “We know it now as Manhattan, but this fascinating book takes a look at the ecological history of the Hudson Valley and describes how it has been transformed into today’s thriving metropolis.

“I first bought the book when I was at university whilst researching an essay on the value that the picturesque landscape of Central Park offers to its residents.

“Central Park was designed to recreate a romanticised English pastoral landscape and to make New Yorkers feel more connected with nature. Gotham Unbound highlights how much effort was put into conquering the natural landscapes present on Manhattan and engineering a replacement parkland, erasing what was there.

“I picked the book up again recently and, with the launch of our new Civil Engineering service at Land Studio, it seems more relevant than ever that we should be thinking about how we work with existing landscapes, their complex ecology, hydrology and cultural value.

“We need to learn the lessons of the past and look at how we can do this better in the future.”