The Wayzata Lake Effect is a community-wide multi-year initiative to redevelop Wayzata’s greatest asset for the 21st century. The Initiative is composed of multiple components and phases.
The Lake Effect effort is focused on shared long-term goals for the city’s best asset: Revitalizing the lakefront, making it safer, more ecologically friendly, and improving access to and along the shore.
“If we can accomplish that, we’ll have done the best we can for Wayzata.”
– Mayor Ken Willcox
On April 19, the Lake Effect design team presented the final schematic design book to the Wayzata City Council. The book includes perspective and schematic designs, the phased construction plan and cost estimates, and long-term maintenance and operations cost estimates and sources.
Signature Park Design Highlights
Eco Park/Section Foreman House – Eastern gateway to the lakewalk featuring a restored pond and marshland. A restorative “pocket park” that respects the natural state of the lake edge and provides an intriguing natural experience suitable for everyday enjoyment for people of all ages, as well as ecological education.
Lake Walk – Entered from the east at Broadway, the lake walk zig-zags along the lake edge and is embraced by restored marsh. The lake walk will feel like a short walk in another world – only steps from the heart of the city.
Active Beach – The plan is to expand and activate the beach in a way that’s suitable for families and people of all ages. By closing the retention pond and treating the storm water underground, space is made available to expand concessions. The beach becomes more inviting with the addition of shade structures and a diving pier.
People-friendly Lake Street – Increase the bike-ability and walkability of Lake Street with an expanded sidewalk and dedicated bike lane, while keeping three lanes for cars. Modest treatment to paving and lighting suggest slowing down and enjoying the lakefront and can become temporary car-free gathering places during the occasional community oriented event.
Master, Plan, Municipal, Public, Space
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Competition completed with Krause Architecture. Awarded first place.
The Rio Reimagined 2018 Ideas Competition encompasses a 58-mile geographic span including the Rio Salado and Gila Rivers. The Rio Reimagined belongs to the eight communities along the river corridor as they partner in creating a vibrant, urban riverfront for the valley. This historically significant and underutilized natural resource has been reimagined as a unifying public space that enhances social equity. A creative and collective effort is needed to integrate priorities of public open space, environmental quality, housing, transportation, economic and workforce development, community sustainability and resilience.
In July 2014, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced a series of initiatives to further the successful growth of Downtown Brooklyn into a thriving, 21st century Downtown. Among those was an opportunity to “Reinvent the Brooklyn Strand”— by connecting Downtown Brooklyn to its waterfront through a reimagined series of disconnected parks, plazas, and greenways between Downtown Brooklyn and Brooklyn Bridge Park that have enormous potential to become the great promenade and gateway to Brooklyn.
In response to this vision, over 40 stakeholder groups from the Downtown Brooklyn community worked together to offer suggestions for what a “re-imagined Brooklyn Strand” could look like, complete with new connections and improvements that will reinvent this linear park to make it one of the borough’s great destinations and help make Brooklyn Bridge Park truly accessible by creating a seamless connection to major transit hubs in Downtown Brooklyn.
In March 2015, this long-term, community driven vision for the area developed by a design team led by WXY, was presented at a public meeting held in partnership with Community Board 2. The suggestions are preliminary and will require thorough review and due diligence by City agencies.