Green City Spaces

The Garden that Climbs the Stairs in Bilbao, Spain (Balmori Associates)

Increasingly, a major focus of land use planning is on greening the cities. Public gardens, greened façades, city parks, and green public squares have considerably gained in prominence in recent years. They have distinct social, ecological, and economic functions in addition to the importance to the structure and appearance of urban spaces. Green areas in the city serve as leisure and communication areas, while having a positive effect on the microclimate by offering a habitat for flora and fauna. What is more, they are an increasingly important factor in the evaluation of real estate locations. 

Green City Spaces shows the different trends of this discipline at the intersection of landscape architecture and urban planning. Particularly fascinating in this context is the interplay between international trends, regional traditions as well as the climatic and other on-site realities of each city. This volume presents more than 80 projects in detail, highlighting the multitude of possibilities of green spaces planning that make life in the city more worth living.