New Orleans City Park's $400M vision heads to a vote
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This is a rendering of the skim pool at New Orleans City Park. Image: City Park Conservancy
A roughly $400 million master plan that will shape New Orleans City Park for the next 20 years is up for approval Tuesday.
Why it matters: City Park is the largest public space in New Orleans and has more than 3 million visitors annually.
The big picture: The board of the City Park Conservancy — the nonprofit that began managing the park in 2022 — meets at noon to vote.
- The state-run City Park Improvement Association meets at 4pm.
- Both boards need to approve the master plan. Once approved, it moves into the design and implementation phase.
Zoom in: The proposed plan focuses on making the park easier to use while adding access to nature, says Rebecca Dietz, City Park Conservancy's president and CEO.
- Some of the big ideas include a shallow water feature, a treehouse-style event space, a nature play area and a skate park. (Renderings)
- The plan also includes better walking trails, restrooms, sidewalks, lighting and outdoor gathering spaces.
- The ideas in the plan came from community meetings with hundreds of attendees.
Zoom out: Park leaders have already started applying for grants to fund the plan, Dietz previously told Axios.
- They are pursuing state and federal money but will rely heavily on grants from private foundations and donors, she says.
- The park also plans to launch a fundraising campaign.
Catch up quick: The City Park Conservancy is creating a roadmap for the next two decades.
- The last plan, which was approved after Hurricane Katrina in 2005, focused on the southern half of the 1,300-acre park.
- This one focuses on the northern half: Couturie Forest, the former golf courses, the lagoons and the acreage on the lakeside of Interstate 610.
- The process started in 2023 and was expected to finish last year.
Yes, but: The planning was put on hold after pushback over the future of Grow Dat Youth Farm.
- Grow Dat and the park eventually reached a long-term agreement, and the park scrapped plans to relocate the youth farm to make room for a new road.
- City Park then rebooted its planning with more voices involved, including Grow Dat staffers and a youth committee.
What's next: Initial priorities include repairing restrooms, improving sidewalks and adding drinking fountains.
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