Detroit's new riverfront park draws crowds and praise
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A jogger at Ralph Wilson Park. Photos: Joe Guillen/Axios
The city's grand new riverfront park is less than a week old and Detroiters are already taking advantage of its amenities.
Driving the news: The 22-acre, $80 million Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Centennial Park opened last weekend after years of hype, planning and construction.
Zoom in: We joined other walkers, joggers and basketball players at the park Wednesday morning to give it a test run.
What they're saying: Visitors told us they are impressed with the park's features and overall beauty.
- "This is fantastic," said Aaron Passmore, 72, a born-and-raised Detroiter. "I've seen (the city) when it was vibrant, then it went to a dead zone … In my lifetime, I could not imagine it would come back to this degree."
Axios' first impressions:
🏞️ Riverfront connectivity: Perhaps our favorite feature is the park's connection to the broader riverwalk, which used to end near the former Joe Louis Arena site.
- Joggers and walkers can now continue farther west toward the Ambassador Bridge, following paths along the river and through Ralph Wilson Park.
- The park also has a connection point to the Southwest Greenway.
🥾 Walking paths: There are several other paved paths along the perimeter and criss-crossing through the park.
- Combined with the hilly landscape, the trails provide stunning sight lines across the Detroit River.
- Yes, but: Some of the paths are quite wide and collectively take up a lot of potential green space.
🏀 Basketball courts: There are two full courts, for a total of four baskets. A few hoopers were already putting up jump shots.
🔥 Grilling area: The grilling stations at the park's southwest corner are much nicer than what's available at most parks. Marked receptacles for disposing of hot coals are also on hand.
🚰 Bathrooms: The bathroom complex was open, clean and fully functional.
- The drinking fountain also has a spout for refilling water bottles.
🚗 Parking: Free on-street spaces are plentiful on West Jefferson Avenue along the park's northern perimeter.
- What we're watching: If the parking spaces remain free. Detroit Riverfront Conservancy spokesman Marc Pasco tells us: "As far as I know, the city has no plans to make that stretch of Jefferson metered parking."
🤔 What do you think of Ralph Wilson Park? Any hits or misses that stood out on your visit?
- Email [email protected] and share your thoughts!