Andrew McPhee and I both decided to focus on The Open Space Index of East Harlem for our final project. New Yorkers for Parks’ Open Space Index is a set of fifteen NewYorkCity-specific open space and sustainability standards designed to provide residents, community groups, and public officials with data about the strengths and weaknesses of local open space conditions.

Throughout our project, we researched and compared open and passive space. There are several acres that do not meet the Open Space Index standards. We made graphs and visuals to show the importance of health and how important the parks of East Harlem are to the community. Most of East Harlem did not find themselves healthy, but in comparison to the US, they scored themselves healthier.

Passive Open Space is critical to maintaining mental and physical health. East Harlem exceeds the OSI standards for the number of Fields, Courts and Play Areas per resident, while there is a shortage of Total Open Space per resident. Active Open spaces provide respite from city life and give residents a chance to interact with the natural environment.East Harlem falls short of the OSI standard for total acres of Passive Open Space per resident.

sources: http://www.ny4p.org/research/osi/EastHarlemOSI.pdf

http://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20121116/east-harlem/east-harlem-lacks-open-space-but-         not-options-increase-it

Click to access e_harlem_spotlight_110919.pdf