Landscape Typology Planning

Project Details

Great Ecology has been contracted by Denver Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) to develop a system to delineate different landscape types for the purposes of asset tracking and management. DPR wants to understand the total acreage, landscape attributes, and maintenance costs of different landscape types on DPR properties to help inform management and restoration priorities. The system that Great Ecology developed covers a spectrum of landscape types from hardscaped anthropogenic areas to bluegrass lawns to natural plant communities. Great Ecology focused on the natural area side of the spectrum which is not currently covered under DPR Planning, Design, and Construction Standards. The process begins with mapping the different landscape types at a 0.25 acre scale from aerial imagery. Each landscape type is then field verified and site-specific information for each polygon is collected to help inform DPR management of the plant community composition and condition. DPR will then use this data to understand the costs of maintaining different landscape types and identify areas in need of restoration or landscape conversion to identify cost savings and improve efficiencies in operations as well as improve the overall health of DPR properties.