Neighborhood Landing
In today’s rapidly urbanizing world, where development timelines can stretch over months or even years, the concept of "interim parks" offers a refreshing solution for cities and communities. Instead of leaving buildings shuttered or lots vacant while awaiting redevelopment, forward-thinking developers are embracing a new strategy: transforming these dormant sites into vibrant, temporary public parks that enhance the urban realm and bring value to the community.
Landworks Studio has been working in this capacity for several years, with projects across Taichung, Taiwan led by Pao Huei Development, that demonstrate how thoughtful design can turn transitional spaces into valuable community resources. Here’s a closer look at some of these projects.
Neighborhood Landing
Located on the footprint of a former shuttered department store, Neighborhood Landing reimagines a dense urban site as a dynamic public park. Designed for a lifespan of approximately 24 months, this space serves as a hub for daytime and evening activities. It restores critical connections between public pedestrian corridors and local retail, which had been previously severed by the original building. The park’s green spaces and seating areas provide a much-needed reprieve for the surrounding community, making it a lively and functional space during its temporary tenure.
Neighborhood Landing Existing Conditions
Neighborhood Landing Park
Dadong Neighborhood Park
Dadong Neighborhood Park is another excellent example of interim urban transformation. This project turns an industrial lot into a welcoming community space, complete with a lushly planted perimeter, shaded seating areas, and play zones for children. Its design fosters social interaction and a sense of belonging, demonstrating how temporary parks can address the immediate needs of a neighborhood while aligning with long-term development goals.
Dadong Existing Conditions
Dadong Neighborhood Park
Renshan Temporary Park
A former industrial site in transition, Renshan Temporary Park was envisioned as a temporary green lung for the surrounding community. Designed with flexibility in mind, the park accommodates a variety of programs, from quiet relaxation to small community events. By integrating green infrastructure and adaptive materials, the park not only revitalizes the area but also sets a precedent for how industrial sites can be softened during periods of change.
Renshan Existing Conditions
Renshan Temporary Park
Nantun Lounge
The Nantun Lounge exemplifies how interim parks can become cultural touchpoints for their communities. Built on a site awaiting mixed-use redevelopment, this project site provided seating, pathways, and space for public art installations. The design encouraged visitors to linger, connect, and enjoy the space, creating a temporary but meaningful destination in an urban setting.
This site has since been developed into the Nantun Residential Tower. In order to preserve the site as a community resource even after the final construction was completed, we worked closed with the developer to improve the street edge with as much ‘green’ as possible to blur the typical separation often experience at the edge of sidewalks and along legal boundary distinctions. In this case, along the northern edge, the sidewalk has been integrated into the design of a garden, providing public use of the garden as a moment for pause, a comfortable place to sit under the shade of large, new street trees.
Nantun Lounge
A Strategy for Livable Cities
These projects are more than stopgaps; they are a strategy for making cities more livable during times of transition. By investing in interim parks, developers can enhance the urban fabric, improve connectivity, and foster a stronger sense of community.
Interim parks like those in Taichung reflect a shift in how we view urban development. They demonstrate that even temporary spaces can have lasting impacts, setting the stage for long-term success while enriching the lives of residents in the present moment. Rather than leaving sites idle, developers have an opportunity to create vibrant, people-centric environments that breathe life into cities.
Public street edge, Nantun Tower