@Broadway & West 107th - Straus Park
I was pleasantly surprised when heading southbound on Broadway and noticed a corridor of a landscape oasis. This is where Broadway splits off (or joins) West End Ave. and the placement of this park seems to be a successful design solution to the junction of two major vehicular roads.
This park could be referenced to as a ‘Node’ as Kevin Lynch describes in his book ‘The Image of the City’ as a strategic place where one could enter and is typically at a junction of some sorts. This junction or break in transportation is a compelling place for the urban dweller. With such drastically tall buildings and a change in direction of the road, having taller streets trees fill up the vertical space helps ease this transition.
Once inside, there is a visual softness to what your eye has to do. We are given shelter from the sun and and heat, this place can become a destination for people. The image with three individuals sharing a space caused me to chuckle a bit when I was walking around. Not sure if you can share the same chuckle as I can, but I had to take a shot of the human interaction going on.