A long walk in Forest Park today led us to the area just north west of the Muny where a construction crane caught our eyes.
The amazing thing about Forest Park is that we always seem to be taking steps forward in improving the park, unlike the common one step forward, two steps back development commonly seen in our neighborhoods.
Forest Park seems to collaborate with smart people and are driven by a vision that is very easily realized by routine park users, visitors and even cold-blooded species.
“As this area’s grounds were prepped for construction, Forest Park Forever Park Ecologist Amy Witt led the implementation of a Wildlife Impact Mitigation & Inventory Plan — part of our efforts to ensure a better Forest Park for all, including reptiles and amphibians. Working with partners from the Saint Louis Zoo, Missouri Department of Conservation, Fontbonne University and Chaminade College Preparatory School, Witt and the team collected Park wildlife — over 50 turtles in total — then inventoried and relocated them to other sites along the waterway where they can continue to live safely during construction. ”
This intelligent planning just makes sense on all levels.
This ~$3.1M project's main focus was replacement of the Liberal Arts bridge and making the Muny Tributary more accessible and improving the banks with more sustainable and aesthetically pleasing design.
The bridge looks great and the banks are being improved with riprap and large stones forming seating areas and stepping stones in the tributary.
Here's a complete run down of all the elements of the project from Forest Park Forever:
- New areas for visitors to picnic and enjoy the Park
- Boulder seating, a stepping-stone crossing and a new bench
- 42 new trees and new plantings, native and of diverse species
- Naturalistic stream edges that will allow for better water flow
- New underwater input with remote activation to conserve water
- A new bridge designed in the style of other Forest Park bridges
- Additional sidewalk along Government Drive
- An enhanced crosswalk with vehicular and pedestrian stop signs to improve safety
- A connection to the popular recreational path used by walkers, runners and bikers
It will be fun to watch this one evolve. I can't wait to see what species were chosen on those 42 trees.
And hey, who doesn't love a before and after rendering?
Image from Forest Park Forever
With this long, grey winter, it is nice to finally get to Forest Park on a sunny day. And man, this place never disappoints.
