At a recent public
event, the city of St. Paul presented its master plan for 17 miles of the Mississippi riverfront, which it's calling the
Great River Passage.
The
plan ties together various parks, trails, areas of restored habitat, activity
centers, former industrial sites, and more, for over 3,000 acres of river
parkland, according to information from the city.
Although
planning for the Great River Passage took only about a year, funding for the
$1 million project took a decade to get, according to Brad Meyer, a
spokesperson for St. Paul parks.
The
St. Paul Parks and Recreation Department, Denver, Colo.-based
Wenk Associates, and the local
Hoisington Koegler Group led the charge, while the Minneapolis-based
Little & Company came up with the new Great River Passage branding, according to city information.
The main idea is to make the riverfront more natural, urban, and connected, Meyer says.
Even
though the Mississippi River is the city's chief environmental and
economic asset, too much of the riverfront is hard to get to. "The point
is to provide access for all of the city's residents," he says.
The
plan lays out a big-picture view for "how we redevelop, leverage
private investment, and create nature-based recreation" along the
riverfront.
For example, one part of the plan is about making
Watergate Marina at the bend of the Mississippi a hub for recreational activity and environmental
education opportunities, according to city information.
Separately,
the former Island Station power plant, which is vacant, could become a
gathering place. Another idea is to make Shepard Road feel more like a
parkway and less like a busy thoroughfare, he says.
Although
current economic circumstances make it difficult to pursue some of these
initiatives, Meyer hopes the plan will prepare the city for when
funding does come through.
Looking decades into the future, it
will "lead us into using the river, making sure we understand its values
and move forward as an entire city."
Source: Brad Meyer, St. Paul Parks
Writer: Anna Pratt