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In a city, every piece of green space is a treasure. Surrounded by cars, buildings, and asphalt, even the smallest little parcel of trees, flowers, and grass can bring relief.
This is especially evident, reported the Guardian, in Vienna, where a city initiative has brought about the advent of grätzloase, or small neighborhood parklets, tucked into the side of a street where parking space once was.
A Larger Vision
The grätzloase project is run by a city-funded organization called, Local Agenda 21. Since 2015, the organization has been providing grants to help cover construction costs, as well as admin help. Those who support the project say that it is everything one would want an initiative to be: community driven, cheap, and appreciated by locals.
That has been the experience of Jana, who heard about the project in 2019, and built a small grätzloase in front of her apartment with her roommates in 2020. Though it involved some paperwork, and some initial pushback from neighbors, in the end, the locals came around, and even began to appreciate the grätzloase for the life and social space it brings to the neighborhood.
Though these little parks may seem like just a drop in the bucket, in reality they are part of a larger plan. They are an example of “tactical urbanism”: a low-cost, local-driven way of changing environments. The idea is that once people see it can be done they will be more amenable to making larger changes.
“Once people see that something can be done to make the situation better, they develop this bigger vision,” Sabrina Halcik, the managing director of Local Agenda 21, told the Guardian.
Not Only Parking Spaces
And indeed, as DW reports, the idea of turning asphalt into green spaces in Vienna has moved beyond just individual parking spaces. There are now over 350 Viennese projects dedicated to converting asphalt into green or public spaces. For instance, the central Neuer Markt, which was once characterized by rows and rows of parking spaces is now a pedestrian square, filled with trees and seating for tourists and locals alike.
Likewise, one of the city’s central arteries has been turned into a Dutch style cycling lane. One-point-three kilometers of parking has been turned into bike paths filled with trees and plant life.
The grätzloase is proof that sometimes starting small can lead to something big. It is also a testament to the power of community-led projects, and the way one or two people taking action can turn a neighborhood into a community.
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