Her interest in plants began in childhood, encouraged by her mother the horticulturalist and author Beate Hahn 2/
After escaping Nazi Germany, she studied at @smithcollege and @HarvardGSD, then worked with pioneers of modernist landscape architecture. This project with Dan Kiley and Louis Kahn, Mill Creek public housing in Phila, drawing via @ccawire 3/
In 1953 she moved to Vancouver. She would work on public housing, parks, and many significant private houses. Her own house, architecture by Barry Downs with Peter Oberlander. 4/
She had a long collaboration with the architect Arthur Erickson, and played an important role on the Robson Square complex. The architecture and landscape “were integrated from day one,” a colleague said. 5/
She was a mother of three, and a leader in Modernist efforts to reimagine children’s play. Here, her playground for the Canadian pavilion at Expo 67. She would design 70 playgrounds across the country. 6/
She always favoured native plant species and often use them to create a sense of place. Here at the @MOA_UBC, Designed to mimic a landscape of Haida Gwaii. (📷 @ccawire and family photo) 7/
Some of her concerns: “Wilding”; climate adaptation; bringing nature into the city; stormwater and wastewater management; green roofs; social housing; integrated public space. (📷 Kiku Hawkes) 8/
A sad postscript: she died of complications from COVID-19. May her memory be a blessing. 9/9
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My piece on Toronto schools and what should happen to them: keep them public (and if they are sold, sell them smart). theglobeandmail.com/canada/toronto…
These places have important public functions and government should figure out a way to maintain them 2/
News: the board’s real estate agency says they may have six or seven big sites for redevelopment. They floated this apparently theoretical proposal for 1 Danforth Ave. 3/
The First Parliament site is back in the Toronto news, so here’s a thread on be competing plans. 1/
Here’s the latest version that the province has flooded. The site to the north is currently a big box and car dealerships. The First Parliament site is to the south. 2/
The provincial plan (left), shows two buildings with larger footprints. The one to the west would have a library facing the park. City (right), smaller footprints. 3/
Here’s the city of Toronto, without anyone much noticing, banning tall buildings in most of its eastern downtown. Max heights mostly 30m or less. 1/ app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgen…#topoli
This very consequential policy was finished through public consultation that attracted fewer than 300 people, total. 2/
This is profoundly bad policy in terms of economic development, efficient use of infrastructure, housing supply, climate resilience. 3/
A New Urbanist development in Ontario: Replacing a farmers’ field to build homes for retirees who will drive everywhere. theglobeandmail.com/business/indus…
This looks like it will be marginally better than the usual sprawl. But even in this drawing you can see it’s on the edge of farmland. 2/
“People should be able to take care of their ordinary needs within walking distance,” says Andres Duany 3/