Take a moment to reflect on the image of beach pebbles: what comes to mind? Seagulls? Sailboats? Saltwater? Now, imagine walking on a North Kitsap sidewalk adjacent to an artful, geometric arrangement of those same beach pebbles, intermixed with drought tolerant plants. Throw in the aromas of pizza, roasting coffee and garlic toast wafting by on the late afternoon air, and the occasional baritone solo of a ferryboat. Sound like anywhere you know?

If you answered “Kingston,” you’re correct. And if you’re a regular walker along West Kingston Road, you may know that a streetscape fitting this description already exists. It’s the first phase of a project designed by Laurie Larson, principal of Larson-Casteel Landscape Architects, in collaboration with the Kingston Stakeholders group.

Featuring pervious concrete intermixed with beach pebbles and drought-tolerant plants and trees, Larson and the Stakeholders hope the community will join them in expanding this project throughout the downtown area.

Its present scale may be small, but its intentions (which include enhancing walkability, addressing water and use issues, creating a sense of place, and fostering social relationships) are generous, and reflect the values of community-centered revitalization and sustainable development.

Enhancing walkability

The Kingston Stakeholders initially approached Larson about designing a project for the West Kingston Road planting strips in early February.

“One of the long-term objectives (of the Stakeholders) is to enhance walkability in the downtown area,” stated Nancy Martin, a Stakeholder member. (See sidebar for a definition of walkability.) “This can be done through the use of trees as a traffic buffer – they tend to slow drivers down – and through planting strips that separate sidewalks from the road.”

The existing streetscape was relatively new, and Larson’s objective was to address the elements that weren’t working well.

“Laurie was very helpful in recommending ways for us to improve our streetscape,” said Martin. “We’re very happy with her work.”

The project presented a number of design challenges, Larson noted on a recent visit to the site. There is no water access, and the resources available for maintenance – including weeding and hand-watering – are very limited. As a result of these constraints, the original planting beds were unsightly and overgrown with weeds; in addition, the native Hawthorne trees (yes, they do have thorns) had the potential to be unfriendly to pedestrians and cyclists.

“The design had to take maintenance and use issues into account,” Larson said. “And it needed to address runoff and water quality issues in a proactive manner.”

Larson did so by replacing the bulk of the planting beds with rock and pervious concrete (which allows water to infiltrate into the soil) and by filling the remaining beds with low-maintenance, drought-tolerant plants.

For inspiration, Larson turned to the idea of shoreline, and to the work of Roberto Burle Marx, a Brazilian landscape designer, ecologist and painter.

“Marx once did a project using black and grey pebbles arranged in abstract form; I was going for a similar feel in the planting strips, using porous concrete and local stone,” she said. Regarding the beach pebbles, she added, “I was interested in creating something textural that would foster an association with the surrounding landscape. This is a community with strong ties to the water. I think it makes sense to incorporate that into what people see when they walk downtown.”

In addition to strong physical design elements, Larson made use of an important natural resource: people. The Stakeholders paid for the rocks and the plants, and both Larson and her staff donated many hours of their time to ensure completion of the project. In addition, Larson enlisted the help of the Kingston-based Northwest Construction Craft Apprentice School (students and staff built concrete forms and helped with pouring), Fred Hill Materials (they donated the concrete) and Kitsap County Public Works (they provided flaggers and helped with tree removal). The project was permitted in May, and with the help of the community, completed in time for this year’s Fourth of July celebration.

While the first phase is officially complete, Larson sees this as the start of a much broader effort to involve the community in downtown Kingston’s revitalization; she also sees it as an opportunity to share knowledge and resources related to sustainable development. One example of such sharing involves the Hawthorn trees removed from West Kingston Road.

“We still have them, and intend to make sure they are recycled,” Larson said.

As for the details regarding how the community might show their support, one idea being considered involves inviting individuals and local businesses to fund segments of a planting strip. Because the first phase was done almost entirely through donations, the price per strip (relating to installation and material costs) is still being calculated. Those numbers will be available eventually, Larson said. In the meantime, she hopes to discover whether the community supports this effort.

“If they do,” she added, “we’ll need their help to continue.”

Interested in supporting this project? Send donations to the Community Beautification Fund, c/o Downtown Kingston Association, P.O. Box 2152, Kingston, WA 98346.

Walkability: A primer

Walkability, as an element of urban design, concerns the “the safety, security, economy and convenience of traveling by foot.” (Krambek, 2006) A community’s walkability is impacted by its zoning, street connectivity, density, and infrastructure. Walkable communities are affected by access to transit, the presence of quality walkways, buffers between moving traffic (such as planting strips and on-street parking) air quality, street furniture, traffic volume and speed, appropriate shade or sun and general aesthetics.

The walkability of a community has been shown to correlate positively with health and social well-being. In many developed regions of the world, a movement is underway to reclaim streets from cars, and reestablish streets as the social, cultural, economic and recreational spaces they once was.

For more information about the theory and practice of street reclaiming, visit www.vtpi.org/tdm/tdm30.htm.