‘North Park’ designs for new Floyds Fork parks system unveiled
Work could start as early as summer on 30-acre lawn, children’s playground,community lodge and other features
Louisville, Ky.—21st Century Parks today released the first detailed designs of the landscape and structures that will make up what is currently referred to as the North Park portion of “The Fork” – the expansive 4,000-acre public parks system the private, nonprofit group is developing along Louisville’s Floyds Fork watershed.
Two massive parks will comprise The Fork. The North Park will include approximately 1,400 acres along Floyds Fork creek beginning at Shelbyville Rd., the current site of Miles Park, and stretching approximately 2.5 miles south of Taylorsville Rd. It will be continuously connected by new park roads, and 7.5 miles of the Louisville Loop Trail. Compared to the South Park portion of The Fork, the North Park will be characterized by areas of more active outdoor recreation.
“We are excited to give the community its first up close and personal look at the North Park area,” said Dan Jones, president and CEO of 21st Century Parks. “These designs reflect the tremendous public input we received. We believe these parks will be well-loved and well-used.”
One highlight of the North Park is the 30-acre Egg Lawn, bordered to the north by I-64 and designed to be a highly visible, “great lawn”-style landmark for the park. Named for its shape, the Egg Lawn will be encircled by a walking path and Park Drive, and will be adjacent to a community-activity complex and a half-mile tree-lined promenade, named the Grand Allee, which will traverse open lawns, meadows, wetlands and open green sports fields.
The community-activity complex, located off Beckley Station Rd. and just south of the Egg Lawn, will include:
- Children’s Play Area, providing playgrounds and splash parks for a variety of age groups, seating areas, restrooms and picnic shelters;
- Courts for tennis and basketball;
- “Bark park;”
- Nature preserve for discovery and exploration;
- Interpretive Center, offering park visitor information as well as displays and ranger programs revealing the natural features and history of the park;
- The Gheens Foundation Lodge, providing an indoor-outdoor event facility with views from the bank of Floyds Fork Creek, and a variety of meeting and banquet spaces accommodating 10 to 250 people. Lodge made possible, in part, through the generous support of The Gheens Foundation.
Buildings and other structures throughout the park will blend modern and traditional architecture as a tribute to the area’s history. New structures will feature materials of the region’s agricultural heritage, including black barn-wood, natural stone, grey metal roofs, and tobacco-colored wood interiors. A number of existing structures will be preserved, and some will be adaptively re-used incorporating this design theme.
A series of well-attended public meetings were held in 2007 to compile the community’s suggestions for the Floyds Fork parks system. Jones said the designs and plans for the South Park portion of the project, as well as an extensive trails, roadway and water trail system to connect residents with the parks – including the continuous 20-mile long Park Drive – will be finalized and released in the coming months.
Landscape architectural firm Wallace Roberts & Todd, of Philadelphia, created the design in conjunction with Louisville-based design firm Bravura.
Construction could begin next summer
Officials with 21st Century Parks said construction could begin as early as next summer, pending federal approval. The estimated time for the completion of both the North and South Parks is three to five construction seasons, with construction, land acquisition and the establishment of an operations endowment expected to total $100 million.
To date, more than $88 million in private and public funds have been raised, including $38 million in federal funds procured by U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell to fund the building of roads and trails. Mayor Abramson and Louisville Metro Government recently committed $1.5 million to fund the construction of the children’s play area in the North Park.
“Thanks to the support of forward-looking community leaders and park visionaries, we are close to 10 percent of the fundraising goal,” said Jones. “That is something no other parks project of this size in the country can say, and something of which our community should be very proud.”
21st Century Parks will fund the long-term operation and maintenance of the parks through ongoing fundraising and a maintenance endowment.
The new parks system is one of the largest metropolitan parks projects in the nation. Because the acreage cuts through the heart of the last undeveloped section of Metro Louisville, 21st Century Parks has a long term vision for creating the finest urban edge in America.
“We are building for Louisville’s future what the Olmsted generation did 100 years ago,” said Jones, referring to Louisville’s core parks system that was designed in the 19th century by legendary landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted and that has helped shape the growth and quality of life in Louisville.
About 21st Century Parks
Founded in Louisville in 2004, 21st Century Parks is a private, nonprofit corporation leading the creation and management of The Fork – a new, 4,000-acre public parks system along the Floyds Fork watershed in eastern and southeastern Louisville. The new parks system is one of the largest and most ambitious metropolitan park projects in the nation.
The Fork:
By the Numbers
4,000 acres in new park system being developed and managed by 21st Century Parks
- 316 acres = Louisville’s Shawnee Park
- 409 acres = Louisville’s Cherokee Park
- 739 acres = Louisville’s Iroquois Park
- 843 acres = New York’s Central Park
27 miles total stretch of Floyds Fork creek that runs through the project
$53 million estimated in construction projects
3 to 5 construction seasons to complete
2010 summer – anticipated construction start, pending federal approval of plans
1,400 acres included in North Park portion
30-acre Egg Lawn
- 12 acres = Great Lawn at Louisville’s Waterfront Park
- 55 acres = Great Lawn in New York’s Central Park