Linwood Park

About

The Township of Lower Merion purchased a one-acre parking lot in Ardmore and commissioned SALT to design a new community park. Through a participatory process, involving hands-on charrettes with adults and children, SALT’s team developed a design rooted in the native hydrology, topography, and riparian habitats of Cobbs Creek and Indian Creek watersheds.

Categories Place Parks & Play Spaces Recreation Therapeutic

Project Details

Description

The park design reimagines the historic ridgeline between the two watersheds as a bold, playful landform that shapes the site’s identity. Along the edge of the landform, a colorful, low curving wall weaves through the space, serving as seating, a stage, or a walkway. This dynamic feature not only guides stormwater but also creates flexible, unprogrammed areas for recreation and relaxation while transforming the visual experience of the park. A rich planting palette—including an abundance of new canopy and understory trees, shrubs, and perennials—forms a multi-layered native woodland. The vibrant ground layer enlivens the lowland habitat and supports existing mature red oaks. Together, the landforms and diverse plant communities enhance native wildlife, positioning the park as a vital link within the regional green space network.

Today, Linwood Park serves as a model of community stewardship, with the Friends of Linwood Park earning recognition from Lower Merion Township and Montgomery County for their dedication to stewardship of the Park. Throughout the year, the Friends group hosts numerous community events and programs in the Park, which have made it a beloved gathering space for neighbors and visitors alike.

SALT was hired by the community to develop a park master plan (completed in 2009) and then hired by the Township to prepare design-construction documents and conduct Construction Administration. The project has received several prestigious honors, including a Merit Award for Planning from PA-DE ASLA in 2009 (for the Master Plan for Linwood Park), the Public Spaces Garden Blue Ribbon Award from the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society in 2014, and the Excellence in Green Stormwater Infrastructure Award from the Sustainable Business Network of Philadelphia in 2018.

Contact SALT Design Studio info@saltdesigns.com SALT Design Studio Linwood Park Project

Construction Details

Design Firm
SALT Design Studio

General Contractor
Puhl’s Landscaping

Sub-contractors
Yerkes Associates, Studio Gaea

A child on all fours draws with chalk on pavement while multiple other children play in the background.

An adult walks along a trail flanked with bright green foliage on either side.

A salmon colored wall meanders through a park adjacent to lush green grass and open space. Several trees have leaves that are changing from green to orange.

A child walks over a dry stream with waist high foliage on either side while another child is blurred in the foreground as they ride past on a scooter.

A salmon colored wall meanders through an open space with foliage on one side and a large gathering area on the other.

An adult in a blue sweatshirt holds a child’s hand who is wearing a bright red jacket as they walk along a path. Trees and colorful grasses are on either side of the path.

A child in blue stands next to fluffy pink shrubs.

Recent Case Studies

A large group of participants express their excitement at the start of a backpacking trip. Trees and distant mountains fill the horizon behind them.

Program

Wild Hearts Idaho

Wild Hearts Idaho is a non-profit that builds community, confidence, and leadership skills for middle and high school girls through free outdoor adventures.

A close-up shot of Dan riding his trike with a confident grin.

Program

Spokes Fighting Strokes

Spokes Fighting Strokes (Spokes) introduces recovery through exercise and fun by providing recumbent trikes to stroke survivors, amputees, able-bodied humans, and those with or who have had traumatic brain injury (TBI), neck and back injury, Parkinson’s, multiple sclerosis (MS), and cerebral palsy (CP).

An aerial image of the playground showing play equipment, gathering spaces, and a painted ground mural looping around the playground.

Place

Louis H. Farrell Elementary School

This project was designed to advance literacy and learning goals while promoting playful learning in public schoolyards. Key features include a Gateway Plaza, a Literacy Art Loop, an Outdoor Classroom & Performance Space, separate play areas for older and younger children, and a Native Pollinator Meadow & Nature Discovery Trail.