Paris Alston: This is GBH’s Morning Edition. A recent Reddit post asked the question: What explains the major difference in the general vibe of the Boston Common versus the Public Garden? Redditor JulianBrandt19 went on to say, 'The Public Garden is a positively lovely environment, kept meticulously neat. Contrast that with the Common there’s more visible trash build up and it seems to have more of a crime/disorder issue than the Public Garden.’ Residents and business owners in the area have been complaining about a recent uptick in crime on and around the Common. Boston police data show there were 113 total violent crimes reported there at the neighboring Downtown Crossing, and across the street at the Public Garden in September of 2019, compared to 136 last month. The numbers are concerning because as public spaces, the Common and the Garden are supposed to be safe and accessible to all.

Margarita Iglesia: Even if they are slightly different in purpose and character, they feel like a big, big park right at the corner of the city. That’s a privilege.

Alston: We recently took a walk through the two parks with Margarita Iglesia, director of landscape architecture at the Boston Architectural College, to learn more about their differences. We start on the Common, which was created in the early 1800s when a group of wealthy families decided to turn some simple cow grazing pastures into America’s first public park. Iglesia says the idea was to mimic parks emerging in European cities in the early 1800s as places for people to gather, be in nature and find some peace and quiet.

Iglesia: Cities are very congested, very polluted. When you are deep into the park, you don’t hear the traffic so much. And if you have fountains, the sound of fountains is calming. All these things have very positive effects on people’s psyche and feelings.

Alston: It’s also evolved into a space for civic life and community engagement. Several monuments decorate the area, the latest being The Embrace in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King. And The Common is often the site of social justice demonstrations.

Iglesia: Obviously the location of the State House is also very important because it’s like a good place to express your voice in front of the government.

Alston: From a design perspective, Iglesia notes the Common’s many intersecting walkways, vast lawns and rows of luscious trees. Compared to the Public Garden, it’s a lot bigger and more open. We head there next. Iglesia says the Garden was designed in a compact fashion.

Iglesia: About 20 to 24 acres of land, and it was intended to be a botanical garden. And that explains the variety and the amount of trees that we see here, and also all the different plantings of flowering bushes and flower beds.

Alston: Originally a swamp filled with trash, it was born as a botanical garden in the mid-1800s as Boston was developing.

Iglesia: Boston was very congested and the Back Bay was being filled and created as a new area for Bostonians to live. And the Public Garden was intended to be this connection between the Common and the old Boston and the new Boston that was going to be developed in the Back Bay.

Alston: Today, city life can bring all kinds of threats to these two gems of the Emerald Necklace: not just concerns about crime, but climate change that could impact the park’s vegetation as temperatures rise and we see more rain, or development that could make the area private or eliminate it altogether. Iglesia says it takes a dual effort by the city and the Friends of the Public Garden to protect this sanctuary.

Iglesia: The city provides a lot of investment, but these beautiful spaces wouldn’t be as special as they are without the commitment of these dedicated citizens.

Alston: The organization initially focused on the Garden when it was formed in the late 1960s, but over time its attention turned to the Common and the nearby tree-lined Commonwealth Avenue Mall. The two spaces are visited by Bostonians and tourists alike. Some know the distinction and others don’t. Regardless, the hope is that the value is never forgotten. You’re listening to GBH News.

A recent Reddit post asked the question: “What explains the major difference in the general vibe of the Common vs. the Public Garden?”

“Even if they are slightly different in purpose and character, they feel like a big, big park right at the corner of the city. That’s a privilege,” said Margarita Iglesia, director of landscape architecture at the Boston Architectural College.

Iglesia led GBH News’ Morning Edition on a walk through the two parks to learn about their histories and differences.

We started on the Common, which was created in the early 1800s when a group of wealthy families decided to turn some simple cow grazing pastures into America’s first public park. Iglesia said the idea was to mimic parks emerging in European cities in the early 1800s as places for people to gather, be in nature and find some peace and quiet.

“Cities are very congested, very polluted. When you are deep into the park, you don’t hear the traffic so much. And if you have fountains, the sound of fountains is calming. All these things have very positive effects on people’s psyche and feelings,” Iglesia said.

The Common has evolved into a space for civic life and community engagement. Several monuments decorate the area, the latest being The Embrace in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King.

Additionally, it is often the site of social justice demonstrations.

“Obviously the location of the State House is also very important because it’s like a good place to express your voice in front of the government,” Iglesia said.

From a design perspective, Iglesia noted the Common’s many intersecting walkways, vast lawns and rows of luscious trees. It’s a lot bigger and more open than the Public Garden, which Iglesia said was designed in a compact fashion.

“It was intended to be a botanical garden,” she said. “And that explains the variety and the amount of trees that we see here, and also all the different plantings of flowering bushes and flower beds.”

Originally a swamp filled with trash, Boston Public Garden was born in the mid-1800s as the city grew.

“Boston was very congested, and the Back Bay was being filled and created as a new area for Bostonians to live,” Iglesia said. “And the Public Garden was intended to be this connection between the Common and the old Boston and the new Boston that was going to be developed in the Back Bay.”

Today, city life can bring all kinds of threats to these two gems of the Emerald Necklace. That includes not just concerns about crime, but also development that could make part of the area private — or eliminate it altogether. Climate change could also impact the park’s vegetation as temperatures rise and the region receives more rain.

Iglesia said it takes a dual effort by the city and the Friends of the Public Garden to protect this sanctuary.

“The city provides a lot of investment, but these beautiful spaces wouldn’t be as special as they are without the commitment of these dedicated citizens,” Iglesia said.

The organization initially focused on the Public Garden when it was formed in the late 1960s, but over time its attention turned to the Common and the nearby tree-lined Commonwealth Avenue Mall. Bostonians and tourists alike use all these parks.

The organization’s hope is that the value of the Boston Common and Public Garden is never forgotten, regardless if you know the distinction between the two.