planning & landscape architecture
Your community’s parks and open spaces are a big investment. We can help you make the most of these resources through a range of consulting services.
making the most of your open space
As the saying goes, “Those who fail to plan, plan to fail.” Effective conservation efforts depend on reliable, in-depth information about a community’s natural resources, population trends, needs and wants, maintenance capacity, and budgets.
Natural Lands offers a wide range of planning, mapping, and landscape architecture services to help municipal leaders make informed decisions about their open space investments, community development, parks, recreation, and trails.
our fee-based consultation services include:
- master planning for parks and open space
- planning trails and trail networks
- reviewing land development plans
- planning for watershed protection
- creating native plant landscape plans
- developing planting plans as part of stormwater management
- writing ordinances, including native plant lists, open space management, riparian buffer details, and zoning
- creating landscape design for parks and open spaces
- applying for grants
Browse some of our projects in these case studies:
Abington Township Invasive Plant Management Plan
Abington Township, Montgomery County, PA
This plan assessed the current conditions of invasive plants in each of the parks, establishing priorities and providing recommendations for restoring native plant communities.
Bacton Hill Park Master Plan
East Whiteland Township, Chester County, PA
The Park Master Plan includes a modern playground designed with universal accessibility and neurodiversity in mind, featuring accessible equipment, quiet spaces, sensory features, and clear sightlines.
The Mount Penn Preserve Forest Stewardship Assessment & Trail Plan
Berks County, PA
The Plan includes a suite of recommendations that ranged from better management of stormwater to protect water quality to creating unified signage and encouraging the various user groups to work in collaboration.
Delco Woods Park Master Plan
Marple Township, Delaware County, PA
The design centers on the concept of Community in Nature: a landscape of forests and streams interspersed with trails and gathering places as well as serving as a savvy ecological model for making the landscape more resilient to storms and climate change.
Tacony Creek Park Master Plan
Philadelphia, PA
The Park Master Plan reclaims the original intent of the 1915 watershed park with a strategy to restore this “ribbon of green,” offering the citizens an escape from the gritty city and an opportunity to connect to nature.
Darby Paoli Trail Planning
Radnor Township, Delaware County, PA
A combination of multi-use and pedestrian paths that will wind along more than three miles of scenic vistas. Recommendations include related streamside buffer plantings, roadway greening, stormwater management BMPs, and intersection improvements.
Antietam Lake Park Stewardship Plan
Lower Alsace and Alsace Townships, Berks County, PA
This natural resources Stewardship Plan is a blueprint for improving the park’s forests and other habitats, protecting water quality, enhancing environmental education, and welcoming recreation in balance with natural resource protection.
Mineral Hill Acquisition & Master Plan
Delaware County, PA
The plan provides overarching vision to guide three municipalities in enhancing and managing three parks in a cohesive and effective manner with the goal of providing a great experience for visitors while protecting the ecology of the sites.
Montgomery County Greenway Stewardship Plan
Montgomery County, PA
The result of one of the largest comprehensive stewardship planning initiatives in state history is a holistic view of Montco’s natural areas with a clear, cohesive plan for future improvements at the many parks within the region.
Roxborough Reservoir Park Master Plan
Philadelphia, PA
The plan lays out the transformation of an abandoned industrial relic into a nature preserve and addresses several critical issues, including downhill flooding of a nearby neighborhood by incorporating infiltration of stormwater on the site.
Quinlan Nature Preserve Stewardship Plan
New Britain Borough, Bucks County, PA
The Borough had owned the property for more than 40 years, but having a clear plan mapping out its transformation and ongoing maintenance made all the difference.
Native Grassland Meadow Conversion
Newtown Square, Delaware County, PA
A plan to establish a native meadow on 8.4 acres of abandoned fields to improve habitat for rare grassland birds like Bobolink and Eastern Meadowlarks. The process included site preparation, installation, maintenance, and monitoring.
Rose Valley Ordinance & Development Plan Review
Rose Valley Borough, Delaware County, PA
The borough adopted conservation ordinances to mitigate the impact of development on its last large estate. The resulting plan: compact homes, half of the site set aside as open space, and preservation of the historical estate house and large trees.
stewardship planning
Natural areas don’t take care of themselves. They need our help so that people, plants, and wildlife can all thrive.
PECO Green Region
PECO awards grants for southeastern Pennsylvania municipal and non-profit efforts to preserve, protect, and improve open spaces.
growing greener
Each time land is developed, there is an opportunity to add to community open space. All that’s needed are a few straightforward amendments to existing municipal codes.
