The edge, that is the part of the school grounds that contacts the street and adjacent property, defines the initial impression of a school. How a school's site design responds to its immediate surroundings is evident in its treatment of its edges. These edges communicate to the public messages of accessibility or total privacy. For example, a school located in an industrial area could define its boundary by open fencing, but soften this hard edge by integrating trees and landscaping along it. This would provide an aesthetically pleasing screen to adjacent industries as well as discouraging unwanted visitors.
Careful design can accommodate ample sight lines for visual surveillance.
Astute planning and design of site edges help define a school's property lines without continuous fencing or signs. Schools in rural districts with expansive tracts of land need only to create a visual line to define boundaries. For instance, this can be accomplished with landscaping arranged in a coherent pattern. Rows oftrees with canopies maintained above 8' accompanied with low hedges work well to create an edge while allowing visual access.