Uhh, so looking carefully at the picture, it appears they shouldn't have bothered with the inner pathway at all, and should have just connected the bridge over the canal (?) in the background to whatever is under the camera.

Not only does the current design fail to provide a short path in demand, it leaves a goofy little boulevard behind the benches in what appears to be a dense, desirable urban area where you shouldn't waste space.

That's ancient.

Needs more plants.

This is an opportunity with creative landscaping.