Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. and Landscape Archirect at the turn of the century (1900). What does this have to do with the Harris Creek Watershed Stormwater Project? Today,"green space" is viewed as grass somewhat outside our house,but years ago at the turn of the Centurt (1900) there was a lot of excitement about Parks in the City. There were many reasons for this,but what intrigued me the most was the Public Health Issue. The "germ" theory had just been discovered as related to infections and... that the way to deal with the Problem was for citizens to get out of the house (close quarters),get walking and strolling,and get more frequent "baths". Parks were places where all three of these activities could take place. Public Bath Houses were popular in those days. Today,we take a bath at least once a day,but back then it was uncommon to do so. Why? Houses did not have baths,showers,tubs etc and toilet facilities were outdoors and it was OK to wash yourself once a month or less. I know your thinking,but that was the way back then....accept it and let's get on with my points. It started out as Public Health (to prevent infections from germs) and then it turned to Personal Hygiene. Remember Johns Hopkins had a School of Public Health and Hygiene. Parks and Green Space were very popular and Frederick Law Olmsted convinced citizens that the City lived within a Park....that there was a green necklace(green emerald) connecting all the green space and that within this lived a City with People..........the "connectivity" allowed people to get out,converse at gathering spots and became neighborly,allowed cleaning up and green activities .....and brought about safe neighborhoods' It was Sustainable because of this connectivity. This connectivity extended to the Baltimore Harbor and "green to blue' added to the Quality of Human Experiences. Over the years ,a lot of this became disconnected. We can lament over why this took place,but it is what it is. Sprawl resulted to our dismay,but it does not prevent us from doing the best with what we have.....and that is the message of the Initiative Humane Metropolis Baltimore.....bringing back the connectivity that was lost ...with greening....cleaning....getting people out to community gardens ....communicating with our neighbors.....making communities safer and more friendly.....bringing back Baltimore. That brings me to the point of talking abot the Harris Creek Watershed Project that will work to reduce Trash in the Baltimore Harbor but also put into effect Best Management Practices for Stormwater Management that will have greening aspects to this Strategy. The Project includes 20 Neighborhoods and presents a real Challenge,but if carried out well could well put us on a path to bring back the connectivity needed to place the green necklace around the City and connect it to a Cleaner and Safer Baltimore Harbor.
Interested in Helping to futher this along? Volunteer www.Baltimorewaters.org
The Baltimore Harbor Watershed Association Ray D.Bahr MD