Innovation in Design - Greenboro
Starting in the late 1970s, a new neighbourhood was envisioned in the south end of Ottawa, called Greenboro. This new area was designed with cluster housing, where the houses are set close together, thus freeing up ribbons of open green space and pathways. An advertisement from 1978 states 33% of Greenboro was dedicated to recreational land and designed so that people could walk - rather than drive - to neighbourhood amenities.
The early phases of the area have innovative layouts with the houses set at an angle to the street creating a visual relief to what could feel like a crowded landscape with the closely-set houses. The streets also have a wide variety of housing intermixed including detached, linked, semi-detached and townhouses. Some have garages, while others do not, again creating visual variety.
Later phases of the neighbourhood moved away from the cluster concept and angling of houses, yet high density housing continued to be built. The framework of greenbelts and pathways did continue and even today most of Greenboro is notable for the intricate web of pathways leading to the Greenboro Community Centre/Library.
