Talent Front Street

Kencairn Landscape Architecture worked closely with the Talent Urban Renewal Agency, WH Pacific Engineering, and the City of Talent to design a safe and aesthetically-pleasing landscape between the railroad tracks and the northern curb line of Front Street. The social design goal of the project was to provide a pedestrian pathway along the railroad frontage for the residents of Talent to walk, bike and exercise their dogs. The aesthetic design goals focused on maintaining the rural, small town feel of Talent by using less concrete and fewer hard elements in favor of plants and decomposed granite. Technically, the design goals of the project were to incorporate alternative and natural stormwater control, use native and locally adaptive vegetation, and create a safety buffer between the pedestrian uses and the railroad corridor. As part of the design process, KLA assisted Talent Urban Renewal with public involvement in this project.Parking bay placement, tree locations, and view corridor protection were taken into consideration to meet the needs of the neighbors. Front Street is very successful: the barrier to the railroad is a thicket of thriving, flowering vegetation, and the pathways are used by many of the residents. The stormwater control design functions beautifully.