The relationship between crime and park site design

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Authors
Wise, Laura
Advisor
Oliver, Charles Gary
Issue Date
1989
Keyword
Degree
Thesis (M.L.A.)
Department
Department of Landscape Architecture
Other Identifiers
Abstract

There currently exist no usable criteria that planners and park designers can use when evaluating whether a particular parcel of land is well suited for park uses vis a vis its susceptibility to criminal activity. Previous crime/environment studies have primarily focused on residential and commercial areas. Furthermore, these studies have not given consistent results. Studies by Moran and Dolphin (1986) and Samdahl and Christensen (1985) have, however, established the importance of context when determining a particular feature's influence on criminal activity.This study examined the relationship between the design features of two Indianapolis parks and incidences of crime in an attempt to identify facilitating or. inhibiting environmental influences on crime. Documentation of the site features and any potential these two parks and the areas immediately surrounding them as a method of identifying these factors. Documentation of the respective site features revealed that the two parks were similar enough that their differences could be isolated and related to the available crime data. The results indicated that bordering streets exerted a facilitating influence on crime while the existence of bordering homes had an inhibiting effect.

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