When the city of Wilmington decided late last year to spend about $4 million on 6.63 acres of prime riverfront property for a passive park – a number of downtown advocates rejoiced.

But with zero funding in place for its development and an open slate for possible amenities, city officials are in the beginning stages of deciding how to develop the landscape to make the site a regional recreational gem.

The city plans to host a series of public meetings and events sometime in May to gather ideas for the new riverfront park.

Greater Wilmington Business Journal recently gathered eight local professionals specializing in architectural and recreational ventures to discuss what elements they think would work in the future park.

Though they did not participate in the discussion, City of Wilmington’s Amy Beatty, project manger and superintendent of recreation and downtown services, and Allen Davis, urban designer, gave a short presentation about the property, which is at this point essentially a blank canvas.

A lot was shared and talked about, but overwhelmingly participants felt the site should tell the story of Wilmington’s rich legacy as the Port City.

“The fact [is] that there are cities with riverfronts all over the country transforming these sites into real amenities to becoming some of the nicest places in our city… tell that story, don’t hide it,” said Clark Henry, a panelist and owner of Wilmington-based CIII Associates.

As the city begins planning the park, panelists advised officials to consider the following:

• While using the future park for events is warranted and needed, city officials should be realistic about the number of people the site can accommodate.
• An amphitheater could make for a great addition to the site, but it could come at the risk of taking up too much space.
• Keep the concept simple and passive, avoid traditional park features and be creative about the space.
• The city should be serious in its commitment to keep the park space safe and secure for patrons.

 
FROM THE DISCUSSION:
 
THE PROPERTY

“Connection to the Riverwalk seems to be less defined. To me, that seems like a major way to access the site. The site, in my opinion, should be oriented to the Riverwalk.”
-J. Clark Hipp
 
“They want to celebrate the water and have events and functions on the water and see the water. So I think we want to make sure there’s that celebration of the fact that we’re right on the Cape Fear River, and there’s a lot that can be drawn from that with
history, commerce and being able to celebrate that space.”
-Sara Burroughs
 
“I think some of the challenges of this site – not just that it’s sandwiched between the river and commercial space – [is] avoiding that public perception that this is a park for the people who live in those new apartments, and for PPD, and for people at the restaurants.”
-Clark Henry
 
“Another challenge is the unknown of what these buildings around it are going to look like. Right now, imagining how it will be and visioning the wall of building potentially around it, but that may not happen for many, many years. We’re going to have to just anticipate that challenge, work towards it.”
-Donna Ray Mitchell
 
ON PARKING

“I would not like to see another parking deck around there. If there is a parking deck, it should be incorporated into the architecture of the
surrounding buildings."
-Donna Ray Mitchell
 
“I agree. I would hate to see parking incorporated into the site. Around the community college campus, a lot of the … roads are wide. And there might be an opportunity to incorporate some angular parking where there is right now – no parking or parallel parking.”
-Howard Capps
 
“I think that urban edge is important – how does this fit or is nestled into that fabric so you can take advantage of potential parking around the park, so that we are using the land for the park.”
-Sara Burroughs
 
USAGE

 “I think it’s very important to have that diversity for the space that [is] out there that can accommodate a big event. But you don’t go to a park empty, that you’re engaging the public to come to the park for a different reason.”
-Sara Burroughs
 
“I come at it from less is more in this case. You look at the [National] Mall in D.C., and even when there’s nothing out there, there’re a million people out there. And it’s multi-use, because it’s flat and it’s grass. You can do anything anytime.”
-Matt Collogan
 
“I think you could do this without having fixed structures. I think in terms of scale and portion, if you want to have a viable venue for a 10,000-person concert, then that’s going to be the bulk of what you have on this site. And if you thin slice this so you have several outside rooms, and really nice program[s], but do you need what the city council has directed them towards, which is moving Riverfest and some of these other events from downtown to this site.”
-Cothran Harris

LANDSCAPING

“I think it’s really important to, even though we have an open space, to make sure we’re addressing shade through streetscape … The [National] Mall and Charleston, that allée of trees where they have the urban edge so the streetscaping transitions to a promenade.”
-Sara Burroughs
 
“In D.C., everybody is underneath the trees in the summer. They [the trees] take care of themselves if you have native plants in there.”
-Matt Collogan
 
“There could be a really good opportunity for solar panels to be providing shade or gazebos. It’s also a good sponsorship opportunity, so it’s not a cost bore directly by the city.”
-Clark Henry

INTERACTIVE FEATURES

“It would be nice to incorporate elements of play in the landscape ... There’s splash pads, which the city manages now, and then there’s interactive fountains. Like [in] Charleston is an interactive fountain piece, so when it’s off, you can still use the space. In Charlotte, it shoots out of the ground. So it’s a plaza, it’s flat and it’s either on or off. I think that’s a good balance."
-Sara Burroughs
 
“In Greensboro, we did put in a fountain not a splash pad, and even when we had walls to separate them, people still would go into the fountain to play. They wanted to touch and be a part of the water.”
-Ed Wolverton
 
“Public art in this space – there’s an opportunity for that to overlap with recreational, kid things they would like, something that highlights history or natural amenities.”
-Clark Henry
 
“I would be leery of any big plastic structures. You got a theme, this is
your gem on the water; choose wisely whatever you use.”
-Matt Collogan