UB, project partners seek public’s input on transforming LaSalle Park

Published January 10, 2019 This content is archived.

One of the nation’s leading landscape architecture firms, Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates (MVVA), will be in Buffalo next week to launch the conceptual design phase of the Imagine LaSalle park redesign project.

The meeting will be held from 6-8 p.m. Jan. 17 at International Preparatory School, 110 14th St., Buffalo. It will offer an opportunity for the community to directly discuss recommendations and ideas for the park with MVVA designers and community engagement facilitators from the UB School of Architecture and Planning and the UB Regional Institute (UBRI).

Attendees are asked to register for the workshop prior to the event.

To kick off the meeting, UBRI will summarize the engagement work that went into creating the community’s vision for the park over the summer of 2018. MVVA will provide an overview of the conceptual design process and landscape architecture principles that guide its work. Attendees will also hear MVVA’s analysis of existing conditions and design opportunities in the park.

During the community workshop portion of the meeting, community members can travel between stations arranged by design theme, such as connectivity, water access, athletic recreation and others. The public is encouraged to review design concepts, talk about ideas with team members and share written input at each station.

MVVA will return to Buffalo for additional public workshops in February and March.  Each month, the design team will present updated concepts that have been revised based on input from previous meetings and offer a chance for the community to share additional feedback. In late spring, MVVA will return to Buffalo with a conceptual design, including renderings and a large physical model, which will go on public display after the design presentation.

The conceptual design phase builds off the community vision created in 2018, while incorporating specific ideas from the community about what should go into the park, where it should be placed, how it should look and more. After the conceptual design phase is complete, designers will begin schematic design in preparation for construction.

To learn more about Imagine LaSalle and the conceptual design process, visit ImagineLaSalle.org.

The Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Foundation’s generous donation of $50 million to LaSalle Park, announced in October 2018, supports the ongoing design and community engagement process to transform LaSalle Park into Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Centennial Park.