Cincinnati's Smale Riverfront Park and The Banks development have allowed the city and county to repurpose 32 acres of dormant land along the Ohio River into a vibrant city renaissance. Much of the hardscapes for the park are granite in both heavy cubic and veneer applications.
Read more about Smale Riverfront Park.
Photo Credit: Patrick McCue Photography

Cities across the country are finding new, vibrant ways to revitalize their downtown areas. Often, the plans include the creation of gathering spots with beautiful hardscapes that attract city dwellers and visitors. As this trend continues, landscape architects are increasingly choosing granite for its numerous benefits. Jason Kron of Coldspring, one of North America's largest quarriers and fabricators of granite, addressed the urban park and plaza trend and why granite makes an ideal medium for use in multiple ways. Jason answered some common questions about the use of granite for urban redevelopment projects.

Q: What do you think is spurring the increasing use of granite for urban redevelopment?
Kron: Historically, granite has been a material of choice for any project that's intended to stand the test of time. Now, as cities are looking at their aging, vacant buildings or other unused spaces, they want to turn these areas into something beautiful and useful for the community. Parks and plazas are critical to the redevelopment of many communities, and granite works well for these hardscape areas. Not only is granite beautiful, but it also is more durable and resistant to freeze-thaw cycles than most other hardscape materials, requires little maintenance, and meets ADA requirements.

Approximately 24,000 cubic feet (covering more than 38,000 square feet) of Coldspring's prairie brown granite in two different finishes are used for numerous features throughout the Cincinnati Riverfront project, including stairways (treads and risers), paving, seatwalls, benches, drainage runnels, facing, coping, curbing, interactive fountain features, map features, carved benches, wall panels and a bicycle ramp.
Photo Credit: Patrick McCue Photography

Q: Give us an example of a recent urban redevelopment project featuring granite.
Kron: One of the most significant urban redevelopment projects to use granite in recent years is the Cincinnati riverfront project. Construction began with the 45-acre Smale Riverfront Park and adjacent 18-acre development known as The Banks. City and park board officials "?u who began work on the plan in the 1990s "?u envisioned the once dormant land to become the region's new gateway. Though construction is ongoing for this multiphase project, some of the first features of the new development are open. Already, the area has drawn hundreds of thousands of new visitors into the downtown corridor "?u and, according to economists, has pumped tens of millions of dollars into the local economy. The total quantity of granite used thus far is approximately 24,000 cubic feet (more than 38,000 square feet) in a variety of thicknesses, in both heavy cubic and veneer applications.

Using repurposed material from a granite quarry as an artistic element can help keep costs down while creating exceptional appeal. At the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, three granite pieces unusable for manufacturing purposes were used to create artistic landscape elements that complement the sculpture in the plaza outside the new Biomedical Discovery District, Cancer and Cardiovascular Research Building.
Artist and Photo Credit: Maria Artemis

Q: How is granite used for the Smale Riverfront Park?
Kron: In designing the Smale Riverfront Park, granite was the material of choice for many of the features. When designing for the riverfront area, which is located in a floodplain, designers had to consider the Ohio River's inevitable flooding; granite's durability was a key factor. It was chosen specifically for areas where damage from flooding and de-icing is a threat.

So far, prairie brown colored granite from our Millbank, S.D., deposit has been used to form stairways (treads and risers), paving, seatwalls, benches, drainage runnels, facing, coping, curbing, interactive fountain features, map features, carved benches, wall panels, and a bicycle ramp. The finishes include "Diamond 10," a smoother finish, and "Rock Pitch," a rougher finish.

Q: There's a lot of talk today about sustainability. How does sustainability fit into an urban redevelopment's goals for hardscapes?
Kron: Because sustainable design is now a high priority for many landscape architects, granite's small footprint is extremely appealing. For a sustainability-minded design team, granite should be at the forefront of materials in consideration for urban hardscapes due to the aesthetics and long life cycle. And when the hardscape is eventually remodeled, the stone can be reused for the next phase or repurposed for an entirely new project. In some instances the redevelopment of an urban hardscape area might involve the reuse of granite for a new purpose or plaza.

Q: How can an urban redevelopment project incorporate granite into the hardscape, even if the budget is tight?
Kron: Granite has a reputation as a high-end material, which means it's often too quickly dismissed as a budget-breaker. Fortunately for hardscape projects, granite's cost is comparable to the cost of other materials on market. But granite doesn't have to be an all-or-nothing prospect. When the budget doesn't allow for an entire plaza area to be constructed of granite, the material can be incorporated into feature areas or pieces. For hardscaping, one cost-effective way to use granite is as a decorative feature or as an accent on plaza planters, seat caps or seatwalls. Using granite in select areas dresses up the space while keeping the budget in mind.

Granite was chosen for Smale Riverfront Park and The Banks development partly due to its durability and sustainability. The riverfront is located in a floodplain, so granite was selected to mitigate potential damages from flooding and de-icing. When a hardscape is eventually remodeled, granite can be reused or repurposed for a new project.
Photo Credit: Patrick McCue Photography

Q: What new trends are you seeing in the use of granite for hardscapes?
Kron: One trend we're seeing is the use of remnant material to create beautiful feature pieces to accentuate a hardscape or landscape area. Many forward-thinking designers are visiting quarries and selecting pieces that are unusable for the manufacturing process and repurposing them into beautiful artwork for their projects. For example, a piece may be left in its natural state and erected vertically to create a striking sculptural element for an entry. Using repurposed material from a quarry in an artistic element helps keep costs down, while creating exceptional appeal.

Q: What final thoughts do you have on the use of granite for urban redevelopment?
Kron: With urban hardscaping, the design takes advantage of granite's durable properties and puts them to great use. By adapting finishes, the design achieves an aesthetically pleasing, durable walkway surface that can meet ADA requirements and perform for a very long time.

Since 1999, Jason Kron has specialized in the natural stone industry. In his current role as director of sales at Coldspring, Kron works with the architectural and design communities to meet their natural stone needs, and with cemeteries for memorial product and development needs. He can be reached at jkron@coldspringusa.com.