The Nantucket Land Bank acquired a downtown property at the corner of Main St. and Fair St. They asked Bartsch Landscape Architecture to design and manage installation of the first downtown park in over a hundred years. Some expected a grassy mound and a couple benches. Others, who don’t like change, like certain administrators of the Historic District Commission and even the director of the Historic Association baldly stated that the future park would resemble WWI battle trenches, mud and all. Despite their lack of vision and their rallying of town members against the park (imagine!), we saw an opportunity to give something special to the town, something worth its setting at the center of things. We focused on 18th C. and 19th C. maritime materials like granite blocks and custom designed wrought iron fences. We crafted a park sensitive to the island’s historic nature and which remains fully accessible, one that gives the public a diverse and engaging spot. The park has seat walls, benches, special lanterns, and a huge but simply-designed fountain that people can sit on. We derived our planting scheme from species that were popular in 200-year old Nantucket gardens. Today all the naysayers hide in their underground lairs and keep quiet. Locals and visitors crowd the park every day in every season. That’s testament enough for us.
Landscape Construction: Ferrantella Landscaping
Masonry: John Fee Masonry
Electrician: Ellis & Schneider Electric
Plumbing: Pete Christianson Plumbing
Custom Metal Fabrication: Billy Sherry
Total Park Project Costs: $348k
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