Mecklenburg County Parks and Recreation asked Corbin Design to develop an attractive, consistent, expandable and economical wayfinding and signage program for the county’s extensive greenway system. The system needed to direct pedestrians, bicyclists and other users around 33 miles of developed and 147 miles of undeveloped greenways in and around Charlotte.
The challenge in creating the system was to present a wide variety of information clearly, consistently and attractively. It was also important to avoid sign clutter and unnecessary messages in order to respect the natural environment enjoyed by greenway users. The system also needed to be designed for durability, cost effectiveness and changeability to meet a variety of exterior conditions and functional requirements.
The system we developed avoids bright colors and decorative elements, helping the signs appear utilitarian but friendly, in keeping with the overall physical environment. Using different shades of similar colors creates a visual hierarchy among different sign categories. Certain safety and hazard messages employ bright colors to create contrast and command attention.
Critical to the success of this project was the involvement of Charlotte-based dawa, inc., a Corbin Design partner who helped establish and implement the standards throughout the greenway system.
