Northside St. Louis – Gov. Nixon

Calgary, Alberta — Overgrown with weedy brush and nothing inviting beyond a few metal benches and cracked pathways, St. Patrick's Island has long been the ugly sibling of the Calgary Zoo's St. George's Island and the festival-friendly Prince's Island. Its Cinderella conversion will come at the hands of the redevelopment agency that controls East Village, and will follow a similar pattern of the nearby River Walk: clear it out, spruce it up and watch 'em come. Landscape architects from Denver and New York were announced Wednesday to convert a haven for rough sleepers and drug dealers into a paradise of boardwalks, food concessions, skating and family picnics. "We're quite confident we can create a place where people and kids and safely touch the river, put their toes in the water," said Mark Johnson of Colorado-based Civitas. "So that you can have the kind of adventure play you get in the mountains right in the core of the city." Although the redesign is aimed at maintaining a natural feel on the island, the big first step will be razing invasive species of shrubbery and trees that have provided cover for the sleeping homeless. It will have better "visual access" and much better lighting, Johnson said. Continued...

A new city plan for Denver’s National Western Complex reveals details for a massive undertaking that aims to remake, reconnect and rejuvenate the 109-year-old site, with construction unfolding over a decade or longer. But the city’s new master plan, to be released Thursday morning, doesn’t pin down a cost that previous studies suggest will soar well above $500 million. And it doesn’t say who will pay for the project, although officials have said they likely will ask taxpayers to kick in a portion and likely will seek private donors, too. The city also plans to apply for a state tourism funding program. City officials and a National Western Stock Show leader declined to speculate on costs in detailing the new master plan draft to The Denver Post. They say they will finish a financing plan in mid-February, a few weeks before the City Council would consider adopting the final version of the National Western Center Master Plan. Continued...

Interviews with Civitas and W Architecture discussing the success of the St. Patrick's Island project.