Small Public Spaces

Broadway Park
Newburgh, New York

Located on an east-facing slope with panoramic views over the Hudson River, Broadway Park is a small but important public green for the City of Newburgh. This half-acre park is historically significant as a cultural resource originally designed by Downing Vaux, a noted landscape architect, son of Calvert Vaux, who was named for Andrew Jackson Downing.  Constructed in 1903, the park was sited within the street right-of-way to serve as a direct route between the bustling commercial city center and the active waterfront. The park today contains path alignments, retaining walls, and other remnants that date from the initial park construction with limited alterations. Historic adjacent buildings to the north and south that defined the park edges were removed during the 1970s urban renewal process, placing the park within an over, riverfront slope.

In 2007, Heritage Landscapes was commissioned by the City of Newburgh through a NYSCA grant to complete a cultural landscape report for the park. Examination of park history yielded historic as-built photographs and Vaux’s original construction drawings and specifications that aided the development of period plans. Existing conditions field work verified the presence of historic landscapes features and noted deteriorated historic stonework, partially obstructed views to the river, prevalence of invasive vegetation, and unsustainable maintenance requirements. Treatment recommendations and a rehabilitation plan seek to renew the park for the future with aspects of preservation, rehabilitation, and sustainability. Landscape interventions will recapture historic spatial organization and views through changes in vegetation, remove invasive species and add more sustainable vegetation, as well as stabilize, preserve, and repair stonework, walls, and paths.   Together these recommendations form an effective holistic approach that respects landscape history and evolution, preserves remaining character-defining landscape features, stewardship, and landscape maintenance level required for a sustainable landscape at Broadway Park. During this process, the firm participated in community design charrettes that focused on new construction to revitalize adjacent park slopes with mixed use development. Heritage Landscapes advocated for the preservation of this historic park, as a rare surviving example of Downing Vaux’s work in his native city and a legacy that should be respected and incorporated into the renewed City.

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