The city and its interfaces

“The changing scene at the edge and the placelessness
that goes along with it has become a battle ground between efforts
to preserve rural land and the relentless forces of urbanization.”
(Hough, M. 1990. Out of Place: Restoring identity to the regional landscape. p.88)

The city and its interfaces: Designing a waterfront in St. Augustine Beach: A systematic Study for Recovering the Cultural and Natural Landscape of a Place”

New technologies in communication and greater opportunities in mass transportation cause the fast growth of the urban population. A large amount of people moves from rural to urban areas for searching new jobs that bring opportunities for employment. The increase in urban population cause land use change that affects the life in cities by degrading the natural landscape.
Land use change modifies forest, soil, water, and vegetation, but also modifies the intimate relationship between people and the natural landscape. Many times, the damage of those resources is irreversible, and generates dramatic changes in the natural landscape and unique places are missing. Moreover, this process causes the fragmentation of the relationship between urban population and natural landscape.

A natural landscape is composed by forest and water systems, but it is also defined by the specific characteristics of soil and climate. The transformations in the landscape by human interventions define the cultural landscape. This process is based on the particular human appropriation of the land. The natural landscape receives a spatial function and it is transformed by new land uses. The raise of urban public areas is a need within these transformations to assure the quality of life of the community. Moreover, urban open spaces with extensively natural areas guarantee the health of the community and it is critical in the development of social ties.
Despite the intense discussion that landscape architects and scientist’s worldwide hold about social and environmental aspects in urban environments the existing waterfronts and re-developments at the water’s edge failed to preserve and promote the unique natural environment of a place. Indeed, it failed to reconnect communities with the natural landscape and contribute to social fragmentation.

This research analyzes the components of the natural regional landscape in a section of beachfront in St. Augustine Beach, Florida that suffered beach erosion and development pressures due to land use change. I propose an alternative to costly dredging and beach reclamation that includes a series of tools, interventions, and landscape modifications of this threatened site. I used GIS and remote sensing to analyze the composition of the natural landscape and to understand the phenology of the place.

Finally, this research proposes a holistic design to test ideas and arguments by giving an alternative for the ‘hibridization’ of the landscape with in depth analysis of the natural landscape towards the preservation of its key components. This research also analyzes the significance to preserve the natural and cultural landscape in order to promote a sustainable economic development.