WILL HART
Associate at Mathews Nielsen Landscape Architects,
Visiting Assistant Professor in the Urban Management and Placemaking program at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn
PRESENTING
Friday, March 2, 9:45 to 10:45am
Growing the New Landscapes of Governors Island
The Governors Island Park and Public Space Master Plan transformed 87 acres of open green space on the island into a regional destination by taking advantage of its unparalleled setting in New York Harbor. As the Associate Landscape Architect on the West 8 design team MNLA led the planting design for the new island landscapes, the master plan transformed the southern half of the island into a twenty-first century park with spaces for play, recreation, and new soils and plantings. The first phase, completed in fall 2013, includes the gardens of Liggett Terrace and Hammock Grove, a 10-acre afforestation project with more than 1,900 trees. Phase II, also known as "The Hills," opened to the public in July 2016. The planting design for the Hills includes over 40,000 shrubs and covers nearly five acres of steeply sloped landscapes. This presentation will discuss the history, design process, site construction, lessons learned, and will share progress on how the new landscapes are growing.
About Will
William Hart is an Associate at Mathews Nielsen Landscape Architects (MNLA) in New York City where he leads projects at all scales. In addition to his work at MNLA, Mr. Hart is also a Visiting Assistant Professor in the Urban Management and Placemaking program at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn. Currently, his work is focused on the East Side Coastal Resiliency project which spans more than two miles along the shoreline of Manhattan's Lower East Side. When complete the project will protect vital infrastructure, hospitals, and residences from sea level rise. The project will transform sixty acres of city parkland with plantings selected in anticipation of future flooding. William led the planting design of MNLA's work on Governors Island in collaboration with West 8 Landscape Architects. His design of the meadows, grassy slopes, gardens and groves has transformed New York's newest large park.