RECONNECTING: Part 2

COMPREHENSIVE VISION PLAN

56 Comprehensive Plan

Comprehensive Plan

VISION PLAN INTENTIONS Analysis of the existing conditions of the green and civic spaces in the downtown area and a study of existing urban development plans, identified a need to create a comprehensive vision plan which integrates all of these elements into cohesive system of related and complementary parts.

The comprehensive vision plan proposes a three part system of Anchor Parks, Corridors, and Infill Parks. These three interrelated systems will provide Kansas City with a cohesive system of connected green and civic space which currently does not exist.

The Anchor Parks, Corridors, and Infill Parks will offer an implementable solution to the fragmentation of Kessler’s original park system and improve the connectivity of the entire downtown. This system will enhance the existing parks and capitalize on the potential found in Kansas City’s natural features and the underutilized space within downtown.

57

58 Comprehensive Plan

MAIN

STREET

RD LEVA ND BOU GRA

EET

STR

MAIN

STREET

RD LEVA ND BOU GRA

MAIN

LEVARD ND BOU GRA

THE PASEO

12TH STREET

18TH STREET

31ST STREET

ANCHOR PARKS

CORRIDORS

INFILL PARKS

Anchor Parks are iconic parks which have permanence and embody the identity of Kansas City. Corridors are a network of multi-modal transportation routes which act as linear public space. Infill Parks are temporary hybrid parks which link the Anchor Parks and Corridors, while improving the walkability and livability. Together, these three distinct elements form a cohesive system which will create significant public space within the Greater Downtown Area.

Comprehensive Plan

ST MAIN D GRAN

REET

D

EVAR

BOUL

ANCHOR PARKS CORRIDORS

INFILL PARKS

59

60

Research + Analysis

Comprehensive Plan

ANCHOR PARkS Anchor Parks are iconic parks that embody the identity of Kansas City. They build on the existing parks which are essential elements in the character of Kansas City. Anchor Parks have permanence and the potential to connect the city to its place through its history, topography and natural features. These parks primarily serve the city, but can also function as neighborhood parks or serve the region as a whole.

Enhancing the system of Anchor Parks will recognize their significance and further articulate their presence and mutual systemic relationships. As the first part of the threelayered system, these parks anchor the system of Corridors which connect people and destinations within the city and are linked together by the system of Infill Parks.

61

62 Comprehensive Plan

BERKLEY RIVERFRONT PARK

D GRAN D EVAR

ET

STRE

BOUL

MAIN

WEST TERRACE PARK

THE PARADE PARK

RAIL PARK (PROPOSED)

PENN VALLEY PARK

Comprehensive Plan

THE PARAdE PARk RESIDENTIAL

INTERSTATE-670 INTERSTATE-670 SMALL BUSINESSES

EAST TRUMAN ROAD

PASEO

EAST TRUMAN ROAD

CAREER TECHNICAL CENTER

E TRUMAN

RESIDENTIAL COMMUNITY CENTER

PUBLIC LIBRARY

AMERICAN JAZZ MUSEUM NEGRO LEAGUES

18TH STREET

BASEBALL MUSEUM

18TH STREET

PROGRAMMING Tree Line Transitional Green Space Entry Point Recreation Parking Existing Structure

WOODLAND AVENUE

ULEV ARD O BO

CHARACTER

VINE STREET

PASE

WOODLAND AVENUE

VINE STREET

PASE

O BO

ULEV ARD

MERCHANT SERVICES GEM THEATER

BUSINESS DISTRICT

LINCOLN HIGH SCHOOL

ACCESS

Founded in 1900, The Parade Park was meant to be “a central point in provisions for recreation and amusements.” Today, the 21-acre park is home to a ball diamond, playground, tennis courts, .30-mile asphalt track, and a community and fitness center. As one of Kansas City’s most successful and well-used parks, the park programming and amenities will remain with enhancement.

63

PROGRAMMING

Tree Line Entry Point

Transitional Green Space Recreation

Sustainable Features View Overlook

Existing Structure Development 31ST STREET

CHARACTER PENN VALLEY DR

PENNSYLVANIA AVE

PENNSYLVANIA AVE

T I

M

M

U

S

MAIN

P

N EN

DR

IV

E

SUMMIT STREET

SUMMIT STREET

E

NE

E

IVE

IV

DR

R RD

Y

LE

L VA

PIO

NN

PE

AL

ORI

MEM

IVE

DR

RD

VA

LE

OU

DB

AN

GR

27TH STREET

MAIN STREET

BRAODWAY BOULEVARD COMMERCIAL

SOUTHWEST TRAFFICWAY

MAIN STREET

BRAODWAY BOULEVARD

SOUTHWEST TRAFFICWAY

VA RD

GR AN DB OU LE

COMMERCIAL

E-35

INTERSTAT

WEST PENNWAY STREET

E-35

INTERSTAT

64 Research + Analysis

EAST PERSHING ROAD

27TH STREET

RESIDENTIAL

31ST STREET

ACCESS

Comprehensive Plan

PENN VALLEY PARk Found to be a historic and “charming” area by the 1893 Report of the Park and Boulevard Commissioners, Penn Valley Park was created in the heart of Kansas City in the early 1900s. Today, the 176-acre park contains an off-leash dog GR AN DB OU LE VA RD

MEM ORI AL IVE DR

E IV DR

EY LL VA

ER NE PIO

NN PE NN PE

E IV DR

SUMMIT STREET

park, skate park, tennis courts, playground, picnic shelter, and ball diamonds.

Located within the northern half of Penn Valley Park, is the 47-acre Memorial Hill, home of Liberty Memorial and The National World War 1 Museum. In order

DR IVE

INTERSTAT E-35

WEST PENNWAY STREET

EAST PERSHING ROAD

27TH STREET

to provide eyes on the park, development will be proposed for the South and West edges of the park. This will also alleviate some of the park’s maintenance burden. Trees will line Penn Valley Drive to block out the traffic interference

PENNSYLVANIA AVE

and the low-lying area in the middle of the park will be devoted to sustainable

VIEWS

infrastructure.

65

Research + Analysis

INTERSTATE-70

7TH STREET

7TH STREET

INTE RSTA TE-3

INTE RSTA TE-3

5

5

INTERSTATE-70

10TH STREET

10TH STREET

KESSLER: 1893 PLAN

12TH STREET

12th STREET

BEAR

BEAR

DSLE

DSLE

Y RO

Y RO

AD

AD

12TH STREET

BROADWAY STREET

SUMMIT STREET

17TH STREET

ST

ST

PE

PE

NN

WAY NN

WAY

STR

EE

EE STR

T

T

17TH STREET

INTERSTATE-35

INTERSTATE-670

BROADWAY STREET

INTERSTATE-35

SUMMIT STREET

INTERSTATE-670

WE

WE

66

PROGRAMMING

CHARACTER

Tree Line

Civic Space

Transitional Green Space

Entry Point

Sustainable Features

Recreation

View Overlook

Parking

ACCESS

Comprehensive Plan

WEST TERRACE PARk Comprised of Mulkey Square and INTERSTATE-70

INTERSTATE-70

Jarboe Park, West Terrace Park is 7TH STREET

7TH STREET

The 31-acre park stretches along the

INTER

INTE RSTA TE-3

STATE-3

5

5

another of Kessler’s original parks.

10TH STREET

10TH STREET

West Bluffs, overlooking the Missouri 1

and Kansas Rivers. As this is one of

1

12TH STREET

12TH STREET 1

2

2 2 2

BEAR

BEAR

DSLE

DSLE

Y RO

Y RO

AD

the park’s major assets, the repro-

AD

2

3 3

gramming of West Terrace will capi-

4 5

INTERSTATE-670

INTERSTATE-670

talize on these views. The connection

INTERSTATE-670

6 7 7

17TH STREET

NN PE ST WE

WE

ST

PE

NN

WAY

WAY

EE STR

EE STR

T

T

17TH STREET

to help create a cohesive system of green space.

VIEWS

BROADWAY STREET

9

SUMMIT STREET

5

ATE-35 INTERST

front Heritage Trail will be enhanced

BROADWAY STREET

SUMMIT STREET

between the parks and to the River-

INTERSTATE-35

8

OWNERSHIP

67

Research + Analysis

AIL

TRAIL

TR

TRAI

TRAIL TRAIL TRAIL TRAIL TRAIL TRAIL TRAIL TRAIL TRAIL TRAIL

AIL

TR

OO DW ALL

L FL TR AIL

OO DW AL L

FL

AIL

TR

L

DW AL

OO

FL

TR A IL FL L

OO DW AL

AIL

TRAIL

TR

AIL

TR

AIL TR

L FLO ODWA

AIL

TRAI

TR

L

AIL TR

DW AL

OO

AIL

FL AIL

AIL

Tree Line Transitional Green Space Sustainable Features Entry Point View Overlook Development Existing Structure

AIL

AIL TR

AIL

CHARACTER

FR

RIV

HWY 169

G ITA

ER

TH

ON

FR

ET

RE

T ST

ON

FR

RIV

THIRD

STREET

ET

EAST

LOTTE

STRE

TR

BROADWAY

AIL

G ITA

TR

D

T HE

ON

FR

RIV

CHAR

RIVER

G ITA

ER

TH

ON

FR

D BLV

AIL E TR

HERITAG

AIL

RIV

ON

GRAN

RIVER FRONT

HER

FR

ER

FLOO

RITA

TRAIL

T ON

E TR

GE

T HE

ITA

ER

TH

ON

FR

ER

RIV

E TR

AIL

D

OO

FL

Civic Space

AIL

TR

TR

TR

ER

TH

L

D WALL TRAIL

AIL

E TR

ON

FR

ER

RIV

G ITA

ER

TH

AIL

TR GE

ER

AL DW

FLOO

TR

TR

TR

E TR

E

PROGRAMMING

AIL

AIL

AIL

TR

AIL

TR

G ITA

ER

ER

RITAG E

AIL

AIL

AIL

TR

TR

TR

TR

AIL

TRAIL TRAIL TR

AIL

L TR

WAL AIL

FRON

AIL

AIL

AIL

TR

TR

TR

TR

TR

LL TRAIL FLOOD

W AL

L TR

RIVER

AIL

AIL

TR

AIL

TR

AIL

TR

AIL

AIL

TRAIL

68

BERKLEY PARK & REDI

ACCESS

Comprehensive Plan

BERkLEY RIVERfRONT PARk Owned by the Port Authority of Kansas City, Richard L. Berkley Riverfront Park was opened to the Public in March of 1999. The 17-acre park located along the Missouri River between the Kit Bond HWY 9

Bridge and Heart of America Bridge, features a FRONT

small natural amphitheater and mile-long esplanade which ties into the Riverfront Heritage Trail.

The programming for Berkley Riverfront Park will GRAND

align with the Riverfront Development Plan, by enRIGHT-OF-WAY

couraging mixed-use development in the empty lots to the south of the current park. The park’s connections to the trail system will be enhanced and sustainable infrastructure will be implemented.

69

70 Comprehensive Plan

Comprehensive Plan

RAIL PARk (PROPOSEd) The proposed Rail Park is the only Anchor Park which does not currently exist as a park in Kansas City. Due to its location, character, and underutilized conditions, the site has the potential to become a significant public space within the downtown. The Rail Park site is currently a string of surface parking lots abutting the railroad. The site begins on the east side with a parking garage between Central and Wyandotte and extends behind the Freight House and under the Main Street Bridge. The park then continues underneath Grand Boulevard between existing lofts and encompasses a vast amount of surface parking lots until terminating at Charlotte Street.

This site was once rich with industrial activity but has become undefined and lost its connection to its place.

Although the area still retains its industrial character, it now serves as wasted in-between space. The Rail Park site would serve the city better as an infrastructural park which reconnects Crown Center to the Crossroads and the downtown Loop, encourages growth and investment in the area, and mitigates stress on the city sewer system by utilizing water management strategies through existing infrastructural elements.

71

72

HOLMES STREET

OAK STREET

GRAND BOULEVARD

MAIN STREET

BROADWAY STREET

Research + Analysis

19TH STREET

D

R VA LE

U

T

ES

BO

HW

UT

MAIN

STATE-3

5

GRAND

SO

W

PE

NN

WAY

INTER

22ND STREET

EAST PERSHING ROAD

PROGRAMMING Transitional Green Space Sustainable Features Entry Point Recreation Parking

CHARACTER

ACCESS

Comprehensive Plan

HOLMES STREET

OAK STREET

GRAND BOULEVARD

MAIN STREET

BROADWAY STREET

RAIL PARk (PROPOSEd) 19TH STREET

H

D

AR EV

O

UL

L

T

M

ES

BO

E S

23

20

19

OAK

5 STATE-3

1

1

22ND STREET

31 1

8

32 6 6

33 6 4

9

9

14

5 10

6 2 2

11

6

12

7 2 2

6

6 6

1

EAST PERSHING ROAD 12

VIEWS

OWNERSHIP

21

17

31

34 33

INTER

GRAND

McGEE

16

18 18

30

22

16

12 12 12

35

21

16

39 38

38 37

3

28

27

24

36

15

13

29

15

26 25

HW

UT

SO

73

74

Research + Analysis

Comprehensive Plan

CORRIdORS As one of the three elements of the vision plan, Corridors use linear public space as multi-modal transportation routes. The network of Corridors repurpose the existing urban street grid, allocating routes that prioritize nonmotorized transportation. Public and underutilized land adjacent to the circulation spine is designed to enhance urban fabric and add pedestrian amenities. These adjacent destination spaces support the vitality of the corridor, spurring investment and connecting districts.

District fragmentation, as a result of the highways, low population density, and underutilized land, has exacerbated socio-economic and cultural differences. To address the fragmented parks and boulevards system, Corridors seek to revive the current park system for pedestrian and

The corridor approach to public space uses streets to establish a dialogue between districts. The negative or incyclists.

significant relationship between parks and walking for transportation exposes the dissonance between the built environment and societal values. 13

75

76

Research + Analysis

HARLEM RIVERMARKET

WEST BOTTOMS

THE LOOP

COLUMBUS PARK

PASEO WEST

CROSSROADS 18TH & VINE

WESTSIDE

UNION HILL

BEACON HILL

Comprehensive Plan

dOWNTOWN dISTRICTS To address the lack of park use and programming, Downtown Kansas City was divided into the established districts in order to understand the local context surrounding the parks. In addition, the districts were analyzed using various factors to gain an understanding before selecting the Corridors.

AGE DEMOGRAPHICS

RACE DEMOGRAPHICS

The district analysis provided strategies for each district. Factors such as age, race, population, employment, schools, property values, and recent investment projects of the Downtown Council provided an understanding of the needs of each district. The analysis found each district is culturally and demographically unique, district fragmentation continues to exacerbate socioeconomic and cultural differences, and current public space is separated from commercial areas. The analysis provided the foundation to reinvest in the disinvested and fragmented districts through linear parks. The use of the right-of-way as parks will address the historic, multi-generational disinvestment within the districts. The linear parks, or “Corridors�, will connect districts and provide parkland adjacent to commercial areas.

77

78 Comprehensive Plan 18TH & VINE COMMERCIAL

VEGETATION

AGE DEMOGRAPHICS

RACE DEMOGRAPHICS

BEACON HILL

COLUMBUS PARK

CROSSROADS

Comprehensive Plan

THE LOOP

PASEO WEST

RIVERMARKET

UNION HILL

WEST BOTTOMS

WESTSIDE

79

80

Research + Analysis

Research + Analysis

81

82 Comprehensive Plan

COMMERCIAL NODES

COMMERCIAL + RESIDENTIAL NODES

RESIDENTIAL NODES

Comprehensive Plan

district nodes

The network of Corridors connects already established district nodes through pedestrian friendly routes and provides public amenities in adjacent support spaces.

ABSTRACT COMMERCIAL + RESIDENTIAL NODES

83

84 Comprehensive Plan

The map at left shows the current fragmentation surrounding the proposed Corridors. Lighter areas are pedestrian barriers, while darker are strong commercial areas. Corridors pass through both in order to lessen existing barriers.

“The obvious remedies for boundary-making, some of these remedies simple, others technologically advanced.

The simple solution is pedestrianization...�

14

Comprehensive Plan

Framework oF connections Reconnection would provide pedestrian accessibility to diverse residential areas while connecting commercial nodes. Communication between various downtown locations would break boundaries once established by highway systems and residential segregation. The network of Corridors will improve the pedestrian and cycling environment to encourage active transportation. Active transportation “includes any method of travel that is human-powered, but most commonly refers to walking and bicycling.”15 To do this, public space must address the mobility and accessibility for both pedestrians and cyclists. Mobility is the “ability to move between different activity [or amenity] locations.”16 Adapting public space to improve movement will encourage pedestrian mobility and cycling along the corridor. Accessibility is the “number of opportunities or activity [or amenity] locations within a certain distance.”17 Public space also adds pedestrian and cycling amenities to accommodate the existing built and natural environment. Like boulevards, Corridors use a transportation corridor to encourage future investment. Similar to Kessler’s concept for boulevards as a “passage,”18 Corridors move people between commercial areas with supporting destinations along the way.

85

86 Comprehensive Plan

FIGURE GROUND

STREET WIDTH

TRAFFIC FREQUENCY

Comprehensive Plan

The map on the far left shows the figure ground surround each selectselect ed corridor. The middle map reveals the street widths. The right map on the left page show traffic frequency within the downtown area. The map to the right shows topography along corridor routes, while the sections cut through each route longitudilongitudi nally.

EIGHTEENTH STREET

SOUTHWEST BOULEVARD

BEARDSLEY-THIRD STREET

TWELFTH STREET

PASEO BOULEVARD

site selection

87

88 Comprehensive Plan

TRAILS + NETWORK OF CORRIDORS

TRAFFIC STOPS + NETWORK OF CORRIDORS

In the visioning phase, streets were selected using various factors, including: grade changes, adjacent land use, available intervention space, street continuity, proximity to commercial areas, accessibility and safety for cyclists through the NACTO Urban Bikeway Design Guide, ability to spur investment, street widths, and street design through the Boulevards & Parkway Standards of Kansas City, Missouri. Catalytic projects were a major factor in the final selection of the Corridors.

Comprehensive Plan

selected corridors

The seven selected Corridors are 12th Street, 18th Street, Beardsley / 3rd Street, Charlotte, Southwest BouleBoule vard, 31st Street, and The Paseo.

First Priority Second Priority Third Priority

89

Comprehensive Plan

adjacent spaces

The map to the left indicates land use adjacent to the corridor, based on site visits. The map to the right combines all available underutilized land, public, and parkland along each corridor, revealing possible design intervention locations.

Park Negotiable Lot Commercial Destination Civic Residential Commercial Industrial Parking Garage

POTENTIAL DESTINATION SPACES

91

92 Comprehensive Plan

PASEO BOULEVARD

18TH + VINE JAZZ DISTRICT

18TH STREET

To align with the GDAP goals, the Corridors aim to create a walkable downtown, help double the population, help increase employment, connect the culturally-rich districts, and use active transportation as a sustainable travel option. Building bike infrastructure provides citizens a choice of how to move within the city. To ensure that the physical environment is utilized, a city must have policies in place that encourage alternative transportation use.

Comprehensive Plan

93

94

Research + Analysis

Comprehensive Plan

inFill parks Hybrid infill parks and public spaces can be envisioned by rethinking the use of parking lots. These infill spaces will provide residents and employees of downtown with needed green space. Each infill intervention will re-purpose under-utilized surface lots so they serve the city on many levels, one of which is the public realm. The intention behind each Infill Park is to rethink the current situation of the city and the public realm, and to create a new urban space prototype including the possibility of public spaces.

While the public realm should function as a meaningful space where people gather, it should also provide those fundamental systems that benefit the health of the environment and the health of the city’s inhabitants. Understanding that long term implementation will depend on short term initiatives to change public perceptions, Infill Parks will aim to examine existing infrastructural aspects and programmatic functions to see how they can be retrofitted to serve the public realm. The idea of new hybrid spaces will look at creating an urban typology within the city that provides potential public space while simultaneously providing important infrastructural elements and programmatic functions the city still requires.

95

96 Comprehensive Plan

A modified five-minute walking radius, which accounts for the city’s dramatic topography, ensured the even dispersal of infill sites throughout the FIVE MINUTE WALKING GRID

downtown.

Comprehensive Plan

selection process Infill Parks will serve as interstitial connectors to major parks bordering the city’s perimeter and to major corridors that run through the city’s core. To select what constitutes an Infill Park, the physical relationship of underutilized surface lots were compared with adjacent urban population uses. This process identified which lots had the best potential to become usable public space. The three primary population land uses considered in the selection process were where people live, where people work, and where people go for recreation in the Greater Downtown Area. By overlaying these three maps on top of one another, several lots were illustrated that had strong adjacent relationships to where people are in the downtown area; therefore, also revealing the areas with the highest need for public space.

A five-minute walking grid was modified to account for Kansas CIty’s dramatic topography. The walking grid was used to compare the walkable relationship between the lots identified in the population overlay process. Using the walking radius helped ensure an even dispersal of interstitial green and public spaces that were identified in the overall Infill Park network throughout downtown.

97

98 Comprehensive Plan

RESIDENTIAL OVERLAY

BUSINESS OVERLAY

Comprehensive Plan

COMMERCIAL OVERLAY

POPULATION USE + PARKING LOT OVERLAY

99

100 Comprehensive Plan

CONNECTION

VOID

EXISTING

UNIQUE

Each selected lot needed to meet a standard set of physical attributes to qualify as a potential Infill Park. The lots needed to be able to connect certain parts of the city, while currently existing as under-utilized lots. The majority of the spaces identified in the overlay process were void surface lots with unique surrounding context and characteristics.

2 1 3 6

4

5 7 8 10

11

12

13

1. City Market Park 2. Columbus Park 3. I-70 4. 9th + Wyandotte St. 5. 8th + Oak St. 6. 9th + Washington St. 7. Ilus W. Davis Park 8. 10th + Cherry St. 9. Kansas City Plaza 10. Barney Allis Plaza 11. 12th + Walnut St. 12. 12th + Locust St. 13. 14th + Wyandotte St. 14. 17th + Grand Blvd.

15. PAC Parking Green Roof 16. 18th + Broadway Blvd.

17. 18th + Cherry St. 18. 19th + Main St. 19. 21st + Wyandotte St.

15 16 19

SELECTED INFILL SITES

14 18

17

9

102 Comprehensive Plan

ENERGY CONSERVATION

STORMWATER MANAGEMENT

Energy Conservation

Infill Park

Solar Power Generation

Water Capture + Retention

Wind Power Generation

Water Filtration

Infill Parks will be defined by the use of sustainable features. To determine the significant sustainable elements needed for each park, a study of each Infill Park was done to identify what the individual parks could contain. Stormwater management will be a design issue for a majority of the city’s infill, so once each site was clearly identified for a particular sustainable use it was overlaid with the city’s sewer system.

Research + Analysis

potential inFill parks

A key feature of the Infill Parks is their connectivity, which will promote walkability within the downtown. The map at right shows early potential infill sites and the direct route between them.

103

104

Research + Analysis

Research + Analysis

105

106 Comprehensive Plan

9TH ST. + 9TH ST. + WASHINGTON ST. WYANDOTTE ST.

10TH ST. + CHERRY ST.

17TH ST. + GRAND BLVD.

18TH ST.+ CHERRY ST.

CHERRY

CURRENT OCCUPANCY

14TH ST. + WYANDOTTE ST.

14TH

MAIN

BALTIMORE

10TH

OWNERSHIP 23 13 12 12

24 23 23 22 22

02 01

23

27

25

21

02

04 03 03

04

07 05

14

15 09

08 10

LAND USE

ZONING

17

18

32

34

19

35 15

11

15

15

05 06 06

13

18

07

15

01

02

19

09

13

20

08

20

24 25 02

13

13

22 21

22

23

28

22

21 21

03

01 02 02

03

03

15

09 10

14 11

10

16

04

22

20

26

09

20 21

06

08

06

07

04

15

01

03 03

15

05

03

07 07

04

04

35 36 37 36 36 36 38

25 14 14 14

11 03

24 19

19

35

23

24

04 04 04

11 11

04

12

12

14

12 02

38

13

05

35 36

44 44 43 36

36 39

42

40

41

07

16

08 03 03

13

45 45

58 01

54

35 54

34

01 49

01

01 49 04 50 52 51 51

49 49 54 54 54 53

55 01 56 57 58 57

55

11 12

01

33 07

36 37 38 39 40 39 41

03

11

09

09

09

05 08

25

08

43 45 44

11

11

29 31 30 29

42 43

04

06

10

01 02

32

55 56 55

15 14

13

35

57 01

01

41

18

16

05

48

04

19

22 16

12 27

17

06

46

47

28

31 32 33

01

20 21

22

25 26

03

46 01

24

02 03 04

23 14 11 12

28 29 30

35 34 34

38

18 17

15 10

09 27

07

18

25

21

04

17 16 13 14 12

08

08 08

21

20

26

27

04

21

19

08

17

30 31 31 33

16

15

21

04 03 02 01

15 16

30

15 13

06

03

21 20 13

13 13 14 14

11

14

18

28

12

10

09 04

10

04

14

29

21 05

12

04

26

53

48

52

48

51 50

48

49

107

Comprehensive Plan

potential parks analYsis ADMIRAL 21ST ST. + WYANDOTTE ST. PLAZA

BARNEY ALLIS PLAZA

INTERSTATE 70 OVERPASS

KANSAS CITY PLAZA

WYANDOTTE

18TH ST. + MAIN ST.

I-70

Barney Allis

20TH

9TH

12TH

8TH I-70 D

LV

TB

WES

UTH

SO

PASEO

GRAND

WALNUT

DELAWARE

OAK

WYANDOTTE

WYANDOTTE

11TH

58

05 04

06

09

01

02

01

06 10

40

09 12

35

44

41 36

11

13 15

20 17

54

53

72

53

71

52

41 09 29

45

64

39 21

33 34 32

45

45 45

09 38 28

37 31 30

47 47 50

48

11

67 68 70

07

04

06

18 18

18 17 20 232221 18 26 24

02

03

18 18 18

03 03 03

04

18 18

39 38 37 36

32

34

09

04 04

07

04 03 02 02 06 05

09

12

04 13

13 14

11

51

01

32 19

27 73

28

18

01

28

15

15

15

20

21

30 31

29

27 18 15

18

13

16

12

12

19 20

12

12 25 26

30

17

04

09 11

10 10

04 06

07

09

48 48

48

15

15

08

08

04 05

35

30

24 23 22 21 21

31

20

70

25

14

43

42

29

08

13 04

10

12

04

44

28

15

08 04

43

27

15

03

11

11

30

12

50 49

26

08

29 01

50

47

45

26

10 15

25

03

04

01

08

33

11

25 03

19

11

17 16

07

09 10 05

08

19

11

11

73 49 50

11

66

74

42 51 46

12 11

15

16 14

14

14

11 54

11

13

63

09

42

40 40

65

61 62 63

55

43 42

01

19

08

07

57 56 53

58

18

18

60 60

58

01. Tower Properties Company 02. The Gas Station Corporation 03. Delofts LLC 04. 300 Delaware Investments 05. Mallin Gibson Family 06. All Nations Flag Com Inc 07. Crawford Architects LLC 08. 311 Delaware LLC 09. Richards & Canover Loft LLC

51

46 25 53

17 18

03

23 23

15 15

04 23 24 19 23 20 22 21 37

23 35 34

40

30 31 33

38

41

41

39 32 15 38 38

36

18 17

17

02 22

23

11

24 01

59 01

01

15

01

01

59 59

15 16

61 60 59

53 53 53

58

52 53

53 57 54 54 55 56

11. Colonial Patterns Inc 20 12. EDC Loans 13. River View Central LLC 14. Noor Mohammad 15. City of Kansas City 19 16. Old Town Partners III19LP 17. Brickhouse Properties 18. WNB Properties 19. Juul Florence 18 20. Juul Marcella

22 18

22. Zarda Helen 13 23. Slaughter Donna 17 24. Cromwell Lofts 25. City Diner Real Estate LLC 13 26. Pisciotta John 14 27. W & S Investors 15 28. Luchen Marurice 29. Belger Realty Co Inc 15 30. Phillips Humar Building 31. Smith Yachiyo 03 32. Kay See Dental 33. CHKR LLC 34. Winslow Susan 10 35. Calc LLC 36. Boatsman First National Bank 37. Land Trust of Jackson County 08 38. Sam Properties LLC 52. Sacco Joseph 39. 523 Grand Properties LP 53. JC40.

Auto Park Inc Nigro Maxine 54. SSHSBC LLC 41. Bridgeworks Home LLC 55. 404 LLC & Supply Corp07 06 42.Building Rudd Clutch 43. Orr Dwight Wayne 57. Zeinfeld Seymour 44. Unique City Investments LLC 58. 220 LLC 45.Admiral Frandsen Peter 59. WU 46.Building WilliamsInvestors Billie 60. Danguard 47. DefeoInc Nicholas 61. Bunch HE 48. Mandacina Joseph 49. Heartland Food Investment 50. 4th & Locust LLC 51. Wendl Donald

21

23 02

30

04

32 31

05

18

24

05 25 26 25 28 24

27

12 11 03 03

03 09 08

03

01

29

108 Comprehensive Plan

Comprehensive Plan

MULTI-LEVEL DOG PARK + CIVIC SPACE

MULTI-FUNCTIONAL CIVIC SPACE

The park programming for each infill space will be determined according to the surrounding population uses and context. Infrastructural functions will be present in each site. Sustainable design solutions will be applicable to all sites, however designs will be retrofitted to best suite each space, aesthetically and functionally. Some of these features will include bioswales, tree canopies, solar collection, and stormwater collection.

109

110 Comprehensive Plan

Comprehensive Plan

connecting the citY In the United States, there are at least 105 million and up to 2 billion parking spaces, a third of which are in surface parking lots.19 In almost every city, zoning and building codes require a certain percentage or number of parking stalls per building.

Much of the time, a large amount of that required space is unoccupied, which creates wasteful space and encourages an individual mind-set counteractive to the collective whole.

As stated by Lewis Mumford half a century ago, “The right to have access to every building in the city by private motorcar in an age when everyone possesses such a vehicle is the right to destroy the city.�20 Cities have become weaker due to this supposed right. The relationship of land to the built environment has become undefined, with a large percentage of available space serving the people as nothing but a convenient storage space for automobiles. Our urban environments have become littered with waste landscape.

Waste landscape can be viewed in different ways: as actual waste, such as municipal solid waste or sewage, as wasted places, like abandoned or contaminated sites, or wasteful places, serving as surface parking lots or topographically undesirable open space.21 These wasted spaces are not occupiable, but instead function as barriers that fragment cities. They are primarily places that people overlook, passing through without stopping to recognize the potential of the place.

111

112 Comprehensive Plan

However, they must become more than that to unite the urban fabric and make today’s cities stronger. “Adaptively reusing this waste landscape figures to be one of the twenty-first century’s great infrastructural challenges as these sites are potentially transformable into new productive uses such as permanent open landscapes or infill developments.”22 A public piece of land that only serves one purpose or audience should not be the standard anymore while attempting to reconstruct unified cities. Open urban sites should have a multifunctional use.

By increasing the value of the wasted space within the urban fabric, we can begin to transform the city into a prosperous, connected whole. “Future infill and growth depend on salvaging and reimagining the collective body of in-between landscapes.”23 Rather than continue with the haphazard development method currently employed in America, there should be an evaluation of how land use could be made stronger to create a denser city.

Waste landscapes within the urban environment, specifically surface parking lots, should be transformed into multifunctional public spaces to connect the city to its place and promote investment and development. “Planned with greater intent, parking lots could actually become significant public spaces, contributing as much to their communities as great boulevards, parks or plazas.”24 Leaving surface parking as it exists today, singularly used, abundant, and cheap, will have negative impacts on the societal minds of America. It allows for each person to be comfortable using personal vehicles on a daily basis, wasting precious land and resources, without understanding how these spaces could better our cities.

Comprehensive Plan

The adverse influence surface parking has on a city begs the question of how it can become an asset to the city. Wasteful lots within the urban core should be examined to understand whether parking is necessary in that area and how much land could be freed for transformative public functions. There would have to be consideration given to applicability of different functions, given the variance of population density and ecological conditions. Surface parking lots have caused havoc on the environmental systems within a city, and sustainable practices need to be integrated into these sites. “Surface parking lots… impact the region’s air and water quality, and increase stormwater runoff and the risk of flooding.”25 The Urban Heat Island effect is especially predominant in areas where surface parking is abundant, destroying the health of cities.

Surface parking should be looked at as an opportunity to serve as ecologically beneficial infrastructural landscapes that serve the public. “The more significant traditional urban landscapes possess the capacity to function as important ecological vessels and pathways, as hydrological and stormwater systems, or greenway corridors that infiltrate [air and water]. These kinds of infrastructural landscapes will surely continue to be important to the overall health and well-being of urban populations.”26 Capitalizing on the opportunities to use the land in a creative way that can serve the city in multiple ways is essential. Existing lots could reclaim land for restorative landscapes, utilize solar and wind energy collection, create spaces for urban agriculture, and repurpose existing infrastructure. When designing parking, it should be standard for the designer to consider how to revitalize an area while combating the ecological damage.

113

114 Research + Analysis

Research + Analysis

Americans spend more time in parking lots than most other public spaces. However, we tend not to think of them as public spaces but simply as blank pavement to park automobiles. In order to make cities stronger, the mindset of the typical American has to be shifted about parking lots. What if a parking lot was only used for automobiles on an as-necessary basis, and the majority of the time it was available for events, public showings, and other uses?

The definition of an urban public space has to change to make our cities denser, and it should not be focused around pastoral strips of nature or sheets of asphalt. Redefined parking lots should serve a social function and encourage the interaction of people in public spaces. Policies should be implemented that promote food and craft markets, food trucks, art displays, public events and rallies, and other social functions in transitional lots. “For something that occupies such a vast amount of land and is used on a daily basis by so many people, the parking lot should receive more attention than it has.”27 Kansas City is one city that is struggling with the overabundance of surface parking. “Large masses of unoccupied parking are left unused for days, weeks or even months.”28 According to research done by the local organization Mid-American Regional Council, approximately 10 to 15 percent of an urban area is dedicated to parking, meaning Kansas City could have up to 126 square miles of parking.29 The majority of parking in that figure is in surface parking lots because it is cheaper to construct than garage parking.

115

116 Comprehensive Plan

More parking stalls than ever are demanded by the single users, who store their vehicles in surface lots for approximately eight hours or less. That means the parking lots primarily go unused in the urban environment. Alternate transportation is also not considered a viable option in Kansas City. In 2008, only 2 percent traveled to work by transit, and the rate of walking and bicycling is half of the national average. Driving is the promoted method of transportation, and Kansas City accommodates its users.31 The urban core will continue its descent into insignificance if its wasteful fields of parking are not made less accessible and transformed into multifunctional public space.

Strategically infilling and transitioning parking lots in Kansas City will help improve the quality of the downtown core. This can be achieved in a variety of methods, from updating surface parking lots to accommodate multifunctional uses, temporarily infilling parking lots as parks that could become prime for development, or reallocating large areas of surface parking to create a necessary urban park. The city has much to benefit from if this plan is implemented. In the past decade, over $6 billion has been invested in the downtown, with $1.3 billion still to come.32 The downtown has made changes to better its center, but policies that encourage surface parking continue to be a large problem. If spaces are made to have more than one function, especially in the central core, they could increase usage and help the urban center be more active. Providing parking for automobiles is a necessity in today’s society, but it should not come at the cost of the city. Instead, locating the strategic areas to transform wasteful surface parking lots in downtown could serve as an economic benefit to the city.

Comprehensive Plan

Kansas City has reinvented its downtown area over the past decade. It has recognized the problems created by the loose city fabric and is attempting to combat that. The Greater Downtown Area Plan, finalized in 2011 in collaboration with the Downtown Council, serves as a master plan to reinvent the downtown. “An economically sustainable Downtown is the end goal. In order for Downtown to work at its best, we will focus on building the numbers of people who live, work, play, attend conferences and grow creative businesses in the neighborhoods of Downtown. Population and employee density are the keys to making Downtown work at its most efficient.�33 A large portion of realizing that goal is transforming waste landscape into multifunctional, vibrant areas. Regardless of whether the urban center reaches its goals, we have to reevaluate the way we see at and design waste landscape.

117

DESIGN PROPOSITIONS

120 Design Propositions

ANCHOR PARKS

CORRIDORS

INFILL PARKS

WASHINGTON SQ. + RAIL PARK

BEARDSLEY RD.-THIRD ST.

THREE INFILL PARKS

Design Propositions

Out of the six Anchor Parks established in the comprehensive vision plan, Washington Square Park and the proposed Rail Park were selected to be developed in further detail.

The Beardsley Road and Third Street Corridor represents one corridor from the comprehensive network of Corridors. And three Infill Parks were selected, 17th and Grand., 10th and Cherry St., and 10th and Wyandotte St., which each represent a different type of infill site.

121

122

Research + Analysis

Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

WaShINGTON Sq. + RaIl PaRk Out of the six Anchor Parks established in the comprehensive vision plan, the proposed Rail Park, in conjunction with the existing Washington Square Park, was selected to be developed in further detail.

Each park has its own unique potential which will be reflected in its design. Together, Washington Square Park and the Rail Park will form an integral system and provide a unique urban amenity for the city. The combined park will define the southern edge of the downtown, resolve a complex situation of fragmented urban land, encourage growth and investment in the area, and add to the character of the city.

Washington Square Park will be redesigned to become an iconic, multi-purpose destination space. The Rail Park will reappropriate undefined and under-utilized land and transform it into an infrastructural park.

123

124 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

Rail Park Washington Square Park

WASHINGTON SQ. + RAIL PARK

DIVIDED CITY

Currently the rail lines create a major separation between Washington Square Park and rest of downtown. The Rail Park has the potential to establish the southern edge of downtown where this division occurs. By extending Washington Square Park across the rail lines and capitalizing on the proposed streetcar and Grand Boulevard improvement projects, Washington Square Park will serve as an urban node and act to reconnect Crown Center to the Crossroads and the Loop.

Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

URbaN CONCEPT Rivermarket ET

STRE

ARD ULEV D BO

GRAN

MAIN

The Loop

o Crossroads

West Side

Crown Center

RECONNECT DOWNTOWN

18th & Vine V ine

125

126 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

CONNECT TO DOWNTOWN

CONNECT TO EXISTING PUBLIC SPACES

AREAS OF INFLUENCE

Washington Square Park will serve as a transportation hub and destination space. The northern half of the park will embody a strong connection to the downtown, while the civic southern portion will flow into Pershing St. and the adjacent public functions; Crown Center, Union Station, and Liberty Memorial.

Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

PRIORITy CONNECTIONS While Washington Square Park and the Rail Park will function together to reconnect the downtown, each park will have its own distinct character and functions.

The Rail Park will serve an infrastructural purpose and act as more of a local park. It will attract users from the art galleries, restaurants, and residences within the Crossroads District.

PRIORITY CONNECTIONS Restaurants + Art Galleries Civic Destinations

127

20TH ST

GRAND BLVD

STREETCAR

128 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

JACKSON CO. COMM

UTER CORRIDOR

TRIANGLE PARK

The Rail Park will capitalize on the 20th Street Plan, while Washington Square Park will serve as a transportation hub by connecting to the Amtrack Station and capitalizing on the Streetcar project and Grand BouleCONNECTION TO PROPOSED AND ONGOING PROJECTS

vard Improvement Project.

Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

Washington Square and the Rail Park will connect to the existing and proposed trails within the downtown and help to create a more solid system. By providing direct, pedestrian only routes, the park will improve the walkability of the area.

CONNECTION TO EXISTING AND PROPOSED TRAILS

129

130

Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

EXISTING CONDITIONS The majority of the proposed Rail Park site is currently under-utilized surface parking lots which produce large amounts of stormwater runoff and contribute to the urban heat island effect. As it currently exists, Washington Square Park possesses a valuable asset in its location and surrounding context. However, it lacks order and a relationship with the street and this significant context. Its design does not adequately produce a sense of place which promotes inhabitation. The current park is not providing the city the amenity which it is capable of providing. By capitalizing on its location and views, Washington Square Park has the potential to exist as the premier Anchor Park in downtown.

The photographs at left show the proposed Rail Park site and Washington Square Park as it currently exists overlaid with the proposed parkland, trails, and infill development.

These provided the first sense of the extent of the park boundaries and the character the parks will possess.

EXISTING CONDITIONS

131

132 ART + DINING

RESIDENTIAL

INDUSTRIAL

SERVICES

RETAIL

EXISTING LAND USE Examining the current land uses and identifying the vacant buildings withPARKING

in the Crossroads District and areas adjacent to Washington Square Park, guided the proposal of infill development, parking strategies, and park programming.

Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

STREETS

FIGURE GROUND

An analysis of the streets and figure ground identified the prominent gaps in the urban fabric of the area.

In addition to the proposed parkland, infill development will help to re-stitch this fabric and contribute to the cohesive feel of the city.

REVERSE FIGURE GROUND

133

134 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

SITE SECTIONS

Sections taken every 100’ through the site examine the relationship between Washington Square Park and the Rail Park and the combined park’s relationship to rest of downtown.

135

136 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

With the implementation of the Streetcar on Main St., the Grand Blvd. Project, and the Blue Cross/ Blue

Shield

Bikeshare

program,

Washington Square and the Rail Park will become a significant urban node.

The Rail Park will connect the Crossroads to Washington Square, which will serve as a park-and-ride location and public transit hub with a direct ACCESS FROM DOWNTOWN

connection to the Downtown Loop.

Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

HOLMES ST

CHERRY ST

WALNUT ST

BALTIMORE AVE

WYANDOTTE ST

CENTRAL ST

WASHINGTON ST

aCCESS 18TH ST

VD BL

T

ES

19TH ST

HW

UT

SO

20TH ST

WEST PENNWAY ST

ND

22

ST

The major access roads into the Rail Park are Wyandotte St., Walnut St., and 20th St., as it is a local park which primarily serves the Crossroads District.

CAMPBELL ST

CHARLOTTE ST

LOCUST ST

OAK ST

GRAND BLVD

MAIN ST

BROADWAY ST

I-35

RAIL PARK ACCESS

With its major connections to down22ND ST

town, Union Station, and Crown 23RD ST

Center, Washington Square Park is accessible by the more heavily traf-

PERSHING ST 24TH ST

ficked streets; Main St., Grand Blvd., and Pershing St.

WASHINGTON SQUARE PARK ACCESS 25TH ST

137

138 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

48 36

279

708

142

9 317 140 95

721

EXISTING PARKING

The existing surface parking lots within the Rail Park boundary contain 2,442 spaces. Many of these spaces sit vacant a majority of the time. The Rail Park will transform these under-utilized parking lots into an infrastructural amenity. The consolidation of under-used parking and removal of surface parking lots will help to solidify the fragmented urON-STREET PARKING

Parking on One Side of Street

Parking on Both Sides of Street

ban fabric of the area.

Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

PaRkING + INFIll STRaTEGIES

PROPOSED INFILL

Existing parking currently in use will be reallocated to new parking garages within the proposed infill development. A walking grid was used to establish the location of the new garages. There will be garage parking within each two-block square for public use and on-street parking will remain available. Garage parking for housing will be located on the same block as the residence.

PROPOSED PARKING

139

140 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

AVAILABLE PARKLAND

CIRCULATION

Perceived space studies were completed to establish the Rail Park boundary and plan infill development that would create distinct edges and INFILL DEVELOPMENT

best solidify the urban fabric.

ART + DINING

RESIDENTIAL

INDUSTRIAL

SERVICES

RETAIL

PROPOSED LAND USE The majority of the proposed infill will be heavily mixed-use with retail on the first floor to create an active street front and residential above to provide sustained users for the park.

PARKING

142

Research + Analysis

Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

MASTER PLAN Washington Square Park and the Rail Park will create a unique and unprecedented urban space which will capitalize on its location and dramatic visual and functional connection to the downtown. The parks will serve as a meaningful and useful green and civic space which will provide public amenities and hold an identity as a place.

As a destination space, the park will function as a transportation hub and the southern gateway to downtown.

Washington Square Park will connect the areas to its north and south which are currently divided by the railroad lines, while the Rail Park establishes a major public East/West connection which does not currently exist. These two parks will act as one in reconnecting the entire downtown area. They will draw visitors from outside of the city but will also serve those living and working downtown. As the preeminent Anchor Park, Washington Square Park and the Rail Park will embody the identity of Kansas City.

143

144 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

PHASE ONE

PHASE TWO

PHASE THREE

Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

PROPOSED PHASING The proposed park is designed to be implemented in the separate phases: PHASE ONE: The redesign of Washington Square Park PHASE TWO: The capping of the existing Blue Cross/Blue Shield parking lot and extension of Washington Square Park over the rail lines to connect to the new Walnut Street Plaza PHASE THREE: The creation of the infrastructural Rail Park

145

146

Research + Analysis

Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

PHASE ONE The redesign of Washington Square Park will define a visual relationship with the downtown and create a sense of place. Replacing the current stone railing along the northern edge of the park with a partial sculpted wall, will define this edge of the park and frame the views of the city. This wall will change height, shape, and function as it relates to the views out of the park and eliminates the undesirable sight of the parking lot below. In conjunction with the sculpted wall, a large frame will serve as a focal point of the park and align with the most powerful views of the downtown, looking north down Walnut.

Phase one will also focus on creating a strong relationship with the street and public transit. A large pavilion located along Main Street, adjacent to the proposed streetcar terminus, containing the bikeshare hub and casual dining will increase permeability. Infill development containing public uses will establish an edge along Grand Boulevard and provide eyes on the park. Seating, overhead structures, and an interactive billboard feature placed on the Southeastern corner of the site will attract visitors from Crown Center. Adding hardscaped plaza will make the space more flexible for recreational use and events.

147

148 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

149

152 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

A pavilion, located adjacent to the streetcar terminus, will provide seating and cover a building containing the bike share hub and casual dining. This will define the western edge of the park and serve as a permeable interface between the park and the street.

Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

153

154

Research + Analysis

Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

PHASE TWO The extension of Washington Square Park will create a significant public space unmatched by anything that currently exists in Kansas City. The sculpted wall along the northern edge of the park and view frame will be replaced by a grass-lawn amphitheater which will serve as the new focal point and act to divide the park into two major spaces. The northern half of the park will still provide dramatic views of the downtown but the focus of the civic southern portion will shift inward.

Phase two will begin with the capping of the Blue Cross/ Blue Shield surface parking lot to the north of the current park. This will create a three-story parking garage with a pedestrian link along the front which will extend to the west to connect to Union Station. The parking garage will have several exits into Washington Square Park, the major of which will be demarcated by the amphitheater structure, which will also house retail and public services. At 20th Street, Walnut Street will be terminated and the current road will be transformed into a pedestrian only plaza and major park entrance. The promenade established in phase one will be extended over the rail lines and end as a grand stair in this plaza.

155

156 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

connection to amtrak

Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

retail

157

158 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

A flexible grass-lawn amphitheater structure will serve as the focal point of Washington Square while demarcating a grand entrance from the parking garage below and housing retail and public services. The amphitheater will also divide the park into two major spaces; the northern half, with an outward focus and connection to downtown, and the southern portion, characterized by its civic connection to the adjacent public space and functions.

Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

159

160 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

Park Boundaries Only! >

The programming of Washington

PEDESTRIAN SITE CIRCULATION

Square Park will allow it be used for a variety of events. Ample seating and dining options will make the park an ideal location for those working downtown to spend their lunch hour.

On weekends the grass lawn could hold a fitness class while the plaza is set up for an art fair. The space will also have the ability to function as a grand outdoor concert venue.

MOVEMENT VS. REST

Restaurants & Community Functions

Park Boundaries Only! >

Park Boundaries Only! >

Park Boundaries Only! >

Fitness Class

Amphitheater

Art & Craft Stalls

Gathering Area

Amphitheater

Permanent Food Stall Gathering Area Multimedia Billboard

WEEKDAY USAGE

WEEKEND USAGE

EVENT USAGE

Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

PROGRAM + USE DIAGRAM Capping the Blue Cross/ Blue Shield parking lot will allow a three-story parking garage to be constructed which will accommodate over 2,000 spaces. Along the front of the garage a pedestrian link will connect to Union Station. This will allow Washington Square Park to serve as a park-and-ride hub for the streetcar and Amtrak.

PARKING GARAGE LEVEL ONE

RETAIL PLAN

Retail Parking Garage Connection

PARKING GARAGE LEVEL TWO

PARKING GARAGE LEVEL THREE

161

162 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

The new Walnut Plaza will provide a flexible public space and connect Washington Square Park to the Rail Park and the rest of downtown.

Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

163

164

Research + Analysis

Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

PHASE THREE The infrastructural Rail Park focuses more on the adjacent context and the Crossroads residents. It integrates the artistic, industrial, and rail aspects which make the area one of the most unique in Kansas City. This part of the city is often overlooked but by connecting to Washington Square Park, the Rail Park can help to reconnect the entire downtown.

Based on the idea of movement and rest, the Rail Park features a hardscaped, linear plaza and narrower, wooden boardwalk surrounded by native plantings to offer users paths of various ambiances. Along each path there are spaces which provide views of the rail and the park’s native vegetation. At the path’s major intersections, there are plazas which provide gathering spaces and act as nodes connecting to surrounding activities.

Phase three of the master plan also includes the construction of residential, retail, and commercial development along the northern edge of the Rail Park. This mixed-use development is intended to draw users into the park with an active storefront and provide sustained users in the residences above.

165

166 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

The rail park will retain the industrial feel of the area which makes the site so unique and feature child-friendly play areas.

Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

167

168

Research + Analysis

Research + Analysis

169

170 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

Water management Located above the former Turkey Creek, the Rail Park site is the lowest topographic point in Kansas City and is currently problematic for the city’s combined sewer. The primary function of the Rail Park is to provide the area with water management strategies which will help to mitigate the stress on the city sewer system. The Rail Park will serve as a break from the impervious surface of the city.

The average rainfall event in the Kansas City Metropolitan Area is 1.37 inches, which means the Rail Park site collects 1,123,000 gallons of water within its boundaries each average rainfall.34 That does not include the additional water flowing from as far up as the downtown Loop onto the Rail Park site due to the topographic conditions.

STORMWATER ON SITE

171

172 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

18TH ST T

SEWER SYSTEM

18TH ST T

HP

HP

LP

LP

HP

Relieving some of the burden on the inadequate sewer system through natural strategies allows the land to serve a greater purpose than remain-

WATER FLOW

ing as under-utilized surface parking.

Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

WATER RUNOFF ROUTE

By capturing the rainfall within the park through a designed urban detention pond, flooding issues have the potential to be alleviated and water quality will be improved.

WATER MANAGEMENT ELEMENTS

173

174 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

RAIL PARK EAST WING PLAN

The water management strategies used throughout the Rail Park create an urban wetland which mimics the natural ecology of the site. Within the East Wing of the Rail Park metal dividers create a terraced system which will capture and cleanse rainwater and runoff. As the water flows through the dividers it is filtered in stages so that when it reaches the detention pond located at the lowest point in the Rail Park it is safe to be used for on-site irrigation and water features.

rail lines

RAIL PARK

interactive wall

detention

linear plaza

Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

rail lines

native grasses

RAIL PARK

overlook

linear plaza

rail yard

EAST PLAZA SECTION

Sections taken throughout the Rail Park show how the spaces of various functions will exist with the infra-

ear plaza, and west plaza.

WEST PLAZA SECTION

rain garden

RAIL PARK

plaza

boardwalk

the rail yard, the boardwalk and lin-

water wall

structural elements: the east plaza,

rail lines

detention overlook

BOARDWALK SECTION

RAIL PARK

boardwalk

rain garden

linear plaza

RAIL YARD SECTION

175

176 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park In the West Wing of the Rail Park, there will be an interactive stone aquifer leading to a child-friendly plaza. Capitalizing on the existing pedestrian bridge will complete the circulation route and strengthen the park’s relationship to Union Station.

Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

177

178 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park By implementing water management strategies, such as bioswales, forebays, rain gardens, and dry and wet detention basins, the Rail Park will capture rainfall and stormwater runoff, cleanse it, and allow it to be used on site.

Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park

179