By Martin Kinnunen
UPMC will receive the
Pennsylvania Horticultural Society’s 2012
Community Greening award for the development of Crossroads Park, a parcel of
“green space” near UPMC Montefiore where community members, staff, visitors,
and patients can enjoy a break in a calming outdoor environment.
“I am extremely proud of our team for
their work on this project,” says John Krolicki, vice president of Facilities
and Support Services at UPMC Presbyterian Shadyside. “Through their efforts and
the contributions of others, our patients, their families, and our own
associates have been able to enjoy a quiet green area in the heart of our
Oakland campus.”
Located on a hillside at Darragh and Terrace streets, Crossroads Park
opened in April 2010. Its development is rooted in the early 1980s, when the
late Ron Forsythe, a UPMC vice president, pledged to neighborhood residents
that the lot would not be developed.
Some facts about Crossroads Park:
- The park consists of four stone-paved, terraced
areas. Each seating level is outlined with a variety of plants that take into
consideration their elevation and placement on the hillside. For example, on
the topmost level, taller trees and shrubs line the eastern side of the seating
area to provide maximum shade.
- Call boxes to reach University of Pittsburgh
police were installed to enhance safety.
- The park’s LED lighting poles (provided by
Duquesne Light) are energy-efficient, create a higher level of safety at night,
and blend into the landscape design.
- Natural stormwater-retention principles, such as
the use of water-absorbing ground cover and foliage and delayed-release
receptors, were incorporated into the design.
- UPMC Grounds crew members attended workshops at
the Center for Sustainable Landscapes at Phipps Conservatory and Botanical
Gardens. Information from the workshops was used to install sustainable
planting and a natural irrigation system to reduce the need for watering.
- The park boasts a large variety of plants and
more than 10 species of trees.
- The rear entrance to the park is a
wheelchair-accessible pathway that leads from student housing on the University
Pittsburgh campus.
- Daily maintenance and upkeep of the park is
completed by UPMC.
