Stratford Park Case Study

Located just outside of Washington D.C. is Stratford Park in Arlington, Va. This 3.8-acre park recently received its first major update since it was established over 50 years ago. It was renovated to include a youth baseball and softball field, tennis courts, basketball court, and an all-purpose field. Updates also include walkways from the neighboring H.B. Woodlawn School, so children can have access to the fields. This park also provides plenty of parking and allows the community to reserve fields. Stratford Park was renovated in order to upgrade its aging facilities to current standards. Part of this renovation included adding a shade structure with a wow factor. Since Stratford Park is small and this is the facility’s only shade structure, it was important that the design of the shade add a signature and iconic element to their park.

Landscape Architect Brian Cipriano with Gordon partnered with the President of Metro Recreation Michael Slifer and Superior Recreational Products to design, manufacture, and install a unique shade structure for Stratford Park. 

Arlington County requires all of their parks to have some kind of shade, either by a pavilion or shaded seating area. Having shade structures in outdoor spaces is ideal for protecting park-goers from the sun’s harmful UV rays, wind, rain, dust, and noise. 

“They didn’t want just any kind of shade structure,” Slifer said.

For this park, the county hired a landscape architect and challenged him to design a shade unlike any other. Cipriano worked with Superior’s design and engineering department to make this unique shade a reality.