Abstract
The basic premise of this dissertation is that urban water resources can be prime opportunities for enhancing cities, adding variety, excitement, identity and esthetic amenities. Renewed interest in the design and re-design of urban waterfronts has created a sense of urgency in developing workable principles and planning criteria, especially those that will respond to the ultimate challenge of stimulating the social, economic and physical fabric of the city. The purpose of this study was to examine what is reported to be one of the most outstanding urban river developments in the United States, the San Antonio River Walk (Paseo del Rio), San Antonio, Texas. By utilizing methods of both landscape analysis and social survey research, the characteristics of both the environment and the use made by visitors was determined. Thus, an insight into the relationship between the design of the development and its use by visitors was obtained. Furthermore, the investigation was analyzed for possible application to other urban waterfront situations. The major objective of this study was to identify environmental design principles of an urban river park-business complex by means of determining the response of users to the San Antonio River Walk, and comparing these results with the author's analysis of the environmental settings and human use patterns. ...
Reed, David Joel (1972). Social and environmental characteristics of an urban river recreation system. Texas A&M University. Texas A&M University. Libraries. Available electronically from
https : / /hdl .handle .net /1969 .1 /DISSERTATIONS -186036.