GROWING GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE:

how to create high-performance

landscapes and healthy cities

Nate Cormier, ASLA, LEED AP

Senior Landscape Architect
SvR Design Company
 GI layers and elements

1. WHAT IS GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE?

Introduction

what is green infrastructure?

 Introduction

nature provides valuable ecological services for urban environments

 Introduction
King County Greenprint, © King County Department of
Natural Resources & Parks with TPL and Jones & Jones

Open Space Seattle 2100

green infrastructure is a tapestry of open space in and around a city

 Minneapolis’s Grand Rounds

Introduction

Boston’s Emerald Necklace

green infrastructure is not a new idea

 Introduction

Mercer Slough Wetlands,

Bellevue, Washington

Snoqualmie River
Fall City, Washington

protected and connected natural habitats are its foundation

 Introduction

Jamison Square, Portland, Oregon

Beaver Lake Park,

Sammamish, Washington

traditional parks, gardens, and trails link communities to this nature matrix
 Introduction

green infrastructure can also address urban challenges

 Forms are patterns

“the forms we conceive are really patterns, and patterns are the
configuration of relationships between natural systems…” –David Miller
 GI layers and elements

2. ELEMENTS OF GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE

 layers

High Point housing

redevelopment, Seattle

Looking at any community…

 layers

we can map its green infrastructure.

 mobility layers
water

people places

habitat

Peeling apart a series of green infrastructure systems like layers

and looking at their constituent parts...
 Table of Elements

reveals a table of green infrastructure elements.

 Table of Elements

green infrastructure elements: habitat

Mercer Slough Wetland,

Element: urban wild

Bellevue, Washington
Olympic Sculpture Park

Element: shoreline
Shoreline Restoration,
Seattle, Washington
 Table of Elements

green infrastructure elements: people places

Element: community garden

Oxbow Park,
Seattle, Washington
Element: streetside garden

2716 39th Ave. SW,

Seattle, Washington
 Table of Elements

green infrastructure elements: water

Rain garden
Glencoe Elementary School, Portland, Oregon
Glencoe Elementary School, Portland, Oregon
Oxbow Park, Seattle, Washington
Maple Valley Library, Maple Valley, Washington
Denny Park Apartments, Seattle, Washington
Denny Park Apartments, Seattle, Washington
Liberty Center Parking Garage, Portland, Oregon
New Seasons Market, Portland, Oregon
SW 12th Avenue, Portland, Oregon
SW 12th Avenue, Portland, Oregon
Element: Bioswale
New Seasons Market, Portland, Oregon
Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI), Portland, Oregon
East Esplanade Park, Portland, Oregon
High Point, Seattle, Washington
High Point, Seattle, Washington
High Point, Seattle, Washington
High Point, Seattle, Washington
 3

Cascading
1 Channel
Rain Garden

Kitsap Administration Building, Bremerton, Washington

Kitsap Administration Building, Bremerton, Washington
Thornton Creek Water Quality Channel, Seattle, Washington
“Swale on Yale,” Seattle, Washington
Meadowbrook Pond, Seattle, Washington
Meadowbrook Pond, Seattle, Washington
Meadowbrook Pond, Seattle, Washington
High Point, Seattle, Washington
Multnomah County Building, Portland. Oregon
Multnomah County Building, Portland. Oregon
Seattle Municipal Courthouse and City Hall, Seattle, Washington
Colman Center, Seattle, Washington
Colman Center, Seattle, Washington
Oxbow Park, Seattle, Washington
Element: cistern
Growing Vine Street, Seattle, Washington
Growing Vine Street, Seattle, Washington
Cascade Community Center, Seattle, Washington
 Table of Elements

green infrastructure elements: mobility

Chief Sealth Trail, Seattle, Washington
Element: complete street

assorted complete streets

Yale Avenue Campus, Seattle, Washington
 layers

integrated systems form of a green infrastructure network

 led by the University of Washington’s Green Futures Lab

GI APPS

3. CREATING A GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE PLAN

SvR on Jones & Jones team for Lake Forest Park, Washington
1) educate the public

Mark Childs, Designing Compelling Public Places

Mike Houck, Creating Livable Cities with Urban Green Space

Robert Garcia, The City Project: New Open Spaces for Social Justice in Los Angeles
Patrick Condon, Green Urban Infrastructure for the 21st Century

OSS2100 included many public lectures, articles, and events

LFP Legacy had a Green Infrastructure Festival
1) educate the public

from the Cascade Agenda by the

Cascade Land Conservancy

Olmsted Brothers plan

OSS2100 linked the effort to Seattle’s history and current imperatives

around growth, public health, and global warming
2) choose your units

what will be your planning unit?

2) choose your units

Tiete River, Sao Paulo, Brazil

corridors can have units too

3) discover the anatomy of the landscape

OSS2100 Technical Panels: Development, Biodiversity, Waters of Puget Sound,

Future Scenarios, Seattle Parks, Climate Change, Transportation Futures

what are your existing green infrastructure elements?

what is missing? what would make the system whole?
4) develop a long-term vision

OSS2100 Green Futures Charrette: 350 people x 3 days

4) develop a long-term vision

watershed by watershed, system by system

4) develop a long-term vision

Seattle’s Green Infrastructure Plan

4) develop a long-term vision

Lake Forest Park’s Green Infrastructure Plan

4) develop a long-term vision

Lake Forest Park’s Green Infrastructure Plan

5) identify catalytic projects

LFP Legacy projects to be integrated into comp plan and CIP

5) identify catalytic projects

online voting for priority projects

5) identify catalytic projects

online voting for priority projects

 PROJECT LOCATION:
A2. Town Center main hub @ intersection of main Creekways and Arterial Green
Streets
VISIBILITY: high
CHALLENGE: high

POSSIBLE PROJECT ELEMENTS:

Habitat
• create a wider riparian buffer and remove
fish blockages at 522 and under Town
Center
• daylight Lyon Creek through the parking lot
Community
• create high-density, mixed-use, transit-
oriented development
• create a central civic space for community
Water
• use bioswales, green roofs, and other LID
features to manage parking lot run-off
Mobility
• improve sidewalks and crosswalks to connect
neighbors to Town Center
• create trail along Lyon Creekway (start of
connection between BG and Interurban)
• park & ride facility
 PROJECT LOCATION:
A4. Tolt Pipeline Trail gateway on the northeast end of Bothell Way Arterial Green
Street and the Lakeway
VISIBILITY: low
CHALLENGE: low

POSSIBLE PROJECT ELEMENTS:

Habitat Water
• restore maintenance-appropriate native • use bioswales, rain gardens, and other LID
habitat in pipeline right-of-way features to manage trail run-off
Community Mobility
• build multi-use trail for bikes and pedestrians

B2. West Fork Confluence
POSSIBLE PROJECT ELEMENTS:
Habitat
• improve riparian and wetland habitat
around creek confluence
Community
• incentive a market or coffee shop
destination along Ballinger Way
PROJECT LOCATION:
hublet at intersection of Lyon Creekway and Ballinger
Way Arterial Green Street
VISIBILITY: high
CHALLENGE: medium
Water
• use bioswales, rain gardens, and other LID
features to manage run-off from Ballinger Way
Mobility
• build part of the trail on the mainstem Lyon
Creekway
• redevelop a segment of Ballinger Way as a
complete street for bicycles, transit, and
pedestrians
 PROJECT LOCATION:
C1. Orchard Park new park on 35th Ave. NE in the Lyon Creekway
VISIBILITY: low
CHALLENGE: low

POSSIBLE PROJECT ELEMENTS:

Habitat Water
• improve Lyon Creek riparian habitat • use rain gardens, bioswales, and other LID
Community features to manage run-off from park and
• acquire land for park street
• create orchard-themed passive open space Mobility
amenities • build portion of Lyon Creekway trail
• improve sidewalks and crosswalks near park
 PROJECT LOCATION:
D1. Greening Perkins Way McAleer Creekway trail on Perkins from Whisper
Confluence to 178th intersection
VISIBILITY: high
CHALLENGE: medium

POSSIBLE PROJECT ELEMENTS:

Habitat Water
• improve riparian and instream habitat along • use rain gardens, bioswales, and other LID
McAleer Creekway features to manage run-off from trail and
Community street
• build benches and overlooks for watching Mobility
and learning the creek • redevelop Perkins as one way with a separate
• build trailhead onto Creekway trail trail (on creek side) for bikes and peds;
 PROJECT LOCATION:
D2. 178th Street Gateway gateway on 178th Street Arterial Green Street
VISIBILITY: high
CHALLENGE: low

POSSIBLE PROJECT ELEMENTS:

Habitat Water
• improve wetland habitat in the Hillside Creek • use rain gardens, bioswales, and other LID
headwaters features to manage run-off from street
Community Mobility
• build creative gateway elements on 178th • redevelop a segment of the 178th Street
Street Arterial Green Street Arterial Green Street as a complete street for
bicycles, transit, and pedestrians
 PROJECT LOCATION:
E1. Greening 158th Street pilot Residential Green Street between 33rd and 35th in the
Sheridan Heights neighborhood
VISIBILITY: medium
CHALLENGE: medium

POSSIBLE PROJECT ELEMENTS:

Habitat Water
• plant native plants for wildlife habitat in LID • use rain gardens, bioswales, and other LID
features features to manage run-off from street
Community Mobility
• use grouped mailboxes to create mini- • meander street to slow traffic
gathering places • create trail-like sidewalk
 PROJECT LOCATION:
E3. Greening Brookside School schoolyard hublet at the confluence of the
Brookside and Hillside Creekways
VISIBILITY: high
CHALLENGE: low

POSSIBLE PROJECT ELEMENTS:

Habitat Water
• improve riparian and wetland habitat at • use green roofs, rain gardens, and other LID
confluence features to manage run-off from school
Community Mobility
• increase environmental and green building • improve safe school walking routes from
education neighborhood and from 178th Street Arterial
• build environmental art with kids to inspire Green Street
stewardship • increase public health and physical activity
education
 PROJECT LOCATION:
F4. McAleer Creek Delta @ intersection of the McAleer Creekway and the Lakeway
VISIBILITY: medium
CHALLENGE: high

POSSIBLE PROJECT ELEMENTS:

Habitat
• restore and enhance Lake Washington
shoreline
• create more distributary channels in McAleer
Creek
Community
• acquire lakeside parcels to increase public
access to the shoreline
• build park amenities such as picnic shelters
and restrooms for shoreline visitors
Water
• use bioswales, rain gardens, and other LID
features to manage run-off from adjacent
roads and residences
Mobility
• build trail spur between Bothell Way, Burke
Gilman trail, and the shoreline
5) identify catalytic projects

OSS2100 projects...provocative and inspirational

 GI OPPS

4. TOWARDS AN AESTHETIC OF PERFORMANCE

towards an aesthetic of performance

“form follows function.” –Louis Sullivan

towards an aesthetic of performance

Stephen Epler Dormitory, Portland, Oregon

towards an aesthetic of performance
towards an aesthetic of performance

New Seasons Market

Portland, OR

Portland Convention Center, Portland, OR

 GI OPPS

5. ESTABLISHING THE NEW NORMAL

establishing the new normal

Seattle’s Green Factor

establishing the new normal

Portland’s Green Streets Program

contact: natec@SvRdesign.com

join the movement: www.greeninfrastructurewiki.com