Tag: Memphis River Parks Partnership

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Memphis in May In “Jeopardy” As Park Negotiations Fall Through

Credit: Memphis River Parks Partnership

An exasperated Memphis City Council urged Memphis In May (MIM) and Memphis River Parks Partnership (MRPP) to put aside “bad blood,” act like “grown ups,” and get a lease deal signed to bring the festivals back to the Tom Lee Park this year. 

Eighty-three days before May, the festivals are “in jeopardy,” according to MIM president and CEO James Holt. Some other contracts cannot be signed — like those securing artists for Beale Street Music Festival — until the lease deal for Tom Lee Park is in hand, he said. 

(Credit: City of Memphis)

Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland has long had the groups in mediation to hammer out details. Holt described hours of meetings recently with Strickland and his team directly. Still, one detail has stymied the lease deal. 

MIM wants a cap on payments made to repair any damages done to Tom Lee Park during the festivals. MRPP wants no cap on those payments, in a sort of you-break-it-you-buy-it situation.

MRPP president and CEO Carol Coletta said renters are likely responsible for any damage done to government-owned facilities like the Renasant Convention Center and the new Memphis Sports & Events Center. 

”Jim Holt — after all the conversations over the last one, and after the mayor his [Chief Operating Officer] Chandell Ryan worked so hard to get the final pieces of this deal — walked away and said, ‘We can’t live with being responsible for our damages, the expense of our damages. We cannot do it. So, we walk away from the negotiations.’”

Holt said MIM agreed to up its average restoration fee of $50,000 a year to $500,000 for the 2023 festivals. Strickland added another $500,000 of city funds. That $1 million would be ready to clean up the park after the festivals. 

(Credit: Memphis River Parks Partnership)

The additional money is needed this year as Tom Lee Park is undergoing a major, $60-million renovation. The renovation will include new landscaping, new sidewalks, new buildings, new play and recreation infrastructure, and more.  

“We feel that [MRPP is] effectively attempting to shut down our festival,” Holt told council members Tuesday. “Now, the government contractor that the mayor and the city pays … is dictating the terms and has told the mayor and MIM, ‘no, $1 million is not enough. I only accept MIM to take unlimited responsibility for any damage.’”   

With MIM being on the hook for damages — even with $1 million in funds to fix any — it would incentivize the group to not damage the park, said council member Worth Morgan. Should the liability fall to MRPP, Morgan said they likely fear MIM “might damage the park unnecessarily as getting back” at MRPP.  

Tension between MRPP and MIM rose almost immediately after MRPP unveiled the new look of Tom Lee Park in 2017. MIM officials quickly pointed out that the new design would shrink the size of the festivals, which would also shrink its revenues, and taxes into city coffers. MRPP has defended the park design as a place for all. All of it has made for a tension between the two that even the public can feel.

(Credit: City of Memphis I Memphis City Council member Worth Morgan)

Morgan said the situation was like “the Greensward issue.” There,  a similar tension was publicly felt between the boards of the Overton Park Conservancy and the Memphis Zoo. That issue flamed, roiled, and simmered — and included an arduous council-led agreement process — from 2014 until a final agreement between them was inked last year. 

“There’s some bad blood between the two and that is really what is inhibiting this [lease deal] rather than dollars and cents.”

Worth Morgan

“You have two boards and there’s distrust, there’s some bad blood between the two and that is really what is inhibiting this [lease deal] rather than dollars and cents,” Morgan said. “That’s why we’re here trying to arbitrate this. So, I would strongly encourage the boards to put down their pitchforks that are pointed at one another and simply agree to the terms that we’ve talked about.”

(Credit: City of Memphis I Memphis City Council member Martavius Jones)

MRPP officials were present at Tuesday’s council hearing on the matter but were not given a chance to speak by chairman Martavius Jones, claiming the hearing was bumping against the council’s full meeting at 3 p.m. Jones invited MRPP back to speak at the next council meeting in two weeks but urged them to have a deal in hand. 

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MEMernet: Memphis/Nashville On a Boat and Tom Lee Park

Posted to Facebook by Bob Boccia

Memphis on the internet.

On a Boat

“After one night in Nashville, this is the best way I can describe the difference between the two cities,” wrote Bob Boccia on Facebook recently.

Tom Lee Sneak Peek

Posted to Facebook by Memphis River Parks Partnership

Memphis got a peek behind the curtain at some of the play structures (in the form of some cuddly creatures) that will soon be installed at the renovated Tom Lee Park.

The Memphis River Parks Partnership (MRPP) shared several images to Facebook, including the one above showing a river-otter slide in construction and the one below showing how it will look with its otter partner.

Posted to Facebook by Memphis River Parks Partnership

The MRPP also shared this bird’s-eye-view shot of the Cutbank Bluff section of the park, noting the brown portions of the bluff will soon be green as thousands of seeds have been planted there.

Posted to Facebook by Memphis River Parks Partnership

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Tom Lee Park Project Wins $3.7M in Fed Funds, Expected to Trigger Nearly $9M More

Credit: Studio Gang/SCAPE

A key piece of the Tom Lee Park renovation project won a $3.7 million federal grant announced Tuesday and is expected to trigger nearly $9 million in additional funds. 

The Tailout Trail section of the park redesign is expected to give “visitors an immersive experience of an ecologically-diverse area at the far south end of the park.” The elevated walkways and Canopy Walk overlook there are the keys to the more-natural southern end of the park called Habitat Terraces in design documents.  

The $3.7 million grant is from the U.S. Commerce Department’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) for the Tailout Trail, a “canopy boardwalk” along the Mississippi River. The EDA said the grant will be matched with $6 million in local government funds and is expected to generate $2.8 million in private investment.   

“This project will provide a unique opportunity to experience the natural splendor that Memphis and the Mississippi River have to offer, while creating opportunities for new local businesses in river touring, biking, and hiking,” said Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development Alejandra Y. Castillo. 

Credit: Studio Gang/SCAPE

Habitat Terraces, where the Tailout Trail will be located, is one of four distinct segments of the new park design. The others, from north to south, are the Civic Gateway, the Active Core, and the Community Batture. 

Designers described the Habitat Terraces as “a more intimate experience of the natural landscape. It is expected to include a Canopy Walk that connects the park to the city by means of an elevated path through the biodiverse forest of Tom Lee Park’s southern zone and immersive platforms which offer park-goers a quiet acoustic environment to experience the sights and sounds of the Mississippi River.

“The Tailout Trail will be one-of-a-kind, inviting visitors up and (during high water) over river habitat for spectacular views of the Mississippi, the Arkansas floodplain, and the more than 325 bird species,” U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen (D-Memphis) said in a statement. “The project will draw national attention and support to Memphis and is expected to bring thousands of new visitors to the riverfront.  

Credit: Studio Gang/SCAPE

“These visitors will have a significant impact on nearby restaurants, music venues, and hotels. Once completed, the Tailout Trail will be a major focal point for eco-tourism in Memphis, spawning new small businesses associated with river touring, biking, and hiking, which will help increase employment opportunities, spur private investment, and advance economic resiliency throughout the region.”

The funding for the trail comes from EDA’s $240 million competitive American Rescue Plan Travel, Tourism, and Outdoor Recreation program.

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VIDEO: Tom Lee Park Construction Begins With Demolition

Credit: Toby Sells

The maw of a big, yellow front-end loader pulverized the tiny gazebo that sat quietly (and largely unused) in Tom Lee Park Thursday morning, marking the beginning of what will be a brand-new park.

As we reported earlier this week, construction on the Tom Lee Park project can officially begin after some key approvals. A final permit was issued by the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) earlier this week, as was an approval from the mayor’s office.

The Memphis River Parks Partnership (MRPP) called the approvals “major milestones.”

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Tom Lee Park Demolition Begins With Final Plan Approvals

(Credit: Memphis River Parks Partnership)

Construction on the Tom Lee Park project can officially begin after a final permit was issued by the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and an approval from the mayor’s office.

The project is spearheaded by the Memphis River Parks Partnership (MRPP) and will completely transform the now-flat and wide-open riverside park with small hills, paths through forests, a cafe with a porch, a covered space for recreation, a new entry plaza, a canopy walk, and more. Construction on the Cutbank Bluff portion of the project got underway earlier this year and is scheduled to be complete this spring. 

Check out a gallery of the latest images of the park plans here:

(Credit: Memphis River Parks Partnership)

Half of the project funding will come from state, city, and county coffers. The remainder of will be raised privately, an effort that got an early boost with a $5 million gift from the Hyde Family Foundation. The Tennessee Department of Conservation and Environment (TDEC) recently granted $800,000 for trails in the park. All funds for the 30-acre park project now total $52 million. 

The plans also got a key approval Tuesday from Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland’s Riverfront Steering Committee for the final construction documents for the park and Riverside Drive. MRPP called that approval and the the USACE permit “major milestones.” They come just before crews begin work Thursday to demolish the existing grass and ground at the park.   

A free, signature park that will put Memphis on the map, complete with fascinating features for everyone to enjoy, 365 days a year.

Carol Coletta

“As I look out my window and see children playing in the River Garden, I think about what an amazing experience Memphis’ kids will have in the new Tom Lee Park,” said MRPP president and CEO Carol Coletta. “From nature walks, to outdoor concerts, to running through the misting fountains on a hot summer day — and so much more — that’s what we have to look forward to. A free, signature park that will put Memphis on the map, complete with fascinating features for everyone to enjoy, 365 days a year. With today’s (USACE) permit approval, we’re a big step closer.”

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MRPP: Summer Season Upgrades Coming for Mud Island

Proposed temporary installation on Mud Island.

Mud Island is up for a raft of updates before the summer season begins, including the new “Soul” sign we told you about yesterday. 

The new sign and the changes are planned by the Memphis River Parks Partnership (MRPP). In our story yesterday, we said the sign was requested by the city of Memphis parks department, which is technically true, however, the MRPP worked through the department on the application.

For the sign, MRPP explained that the slogan — “we have no time for things with no soul” — is to “welcome visitors this summer and remind us all that here in Memphis — We Have Soul.” The color of the flags surrounding the installation “match the brand (and park furniture) of Mud Island Park.”

“The Partnership is always looking for opportunities to add features and attract new activity to the riverfront,” said MRPP president and CEO Carol Coletta. “Following the runaway success of the ‘MEMPHIS’ sign, this temporary placemaking activation adds visual interest to the island from Downtown and gives Memphians and visitors a new reason to visit the island. 

“It’s going to be a very popular photo spot and, together with a whole package of upgrades, will generate new interest and foot traffic on Mud Island Park this summer.”

The Downtown Memphis Commission’s Design Review Board is slated to review the new sign during its meeting today at 4 p.m.

But the new sign is just one upgrade headed for Mud Island this year. Those include:

•   Replacement and renewal of the slate map of Memphis on the Riverwalk.

• Removal of inoperable flagpoles at the south tip of the island and replaced with a new seating area and the best views to the forthcoming construction on Tom Lee Park.

• Repainting of the Gulf Grill and installation of a significant mural by Qwynto.

• Repainting of entrance murals, park fixtures and furnishings.

• New colored lighting on trees in the grove. “Thirty-six LED light fixtures will add a soft glow to the trees in the grove and provide a beautiful backdrop for the Memphis skyline.”

• Replacement of all turf on the south lawn with new, laser-leveled sod that will be more resilient to traffic.

“So many Memphians hold fond memories of childhood visits to Mud Island Park,” said Tyree Daniels, MRPP board chair.  “The island is still a unique place with the unbeatable feeling of being ‘on’ the Mississippi River. These new features and upgrades give us all a new opportunity to make memories this summer.”

Mud Island Park is open every day, year round. The Mississippi River Museum is open from Memorial Day to Labor Day. Also in that time frame, water fills the Riverwalk and concessions are available.

To celebrate the 2021-season opening, museum entrance and kayak rentals will be free on Memorial Day weekend.

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Tom Lee Park Funding Hits Milestone

Credit: Memphis River Parks Partnership

Funding for the $60 million Tom Lee Park renovation project is now 80 percent complete, according to the Memphis River Parks Partnership (MRPP). 

The project will completely transform the now-flat and wide open riverside park with small hills, paths through forests, a cafe with a porch, a covered space for recreation, a new entry plaza, a canopy walk, and more. Construction on the Cutbank Bluff portion of the project are underway now. Half of the project funding will come from state, city, and county coffers. The remainder of will be raised privately, an effort that got an early boost with a $5 million gift from the Hyde Family Foundation. 

MRPP said other gifts have come from AutoZone ($1 million), First Horizon Foundation ($1 million), Baptist Memorial Health Care ($750,000), Campbell Clinic ($250,000) and Regional One Health ($250,000). All funds for the 30-acre park project now total $48 million. 

“It’s exciting to know that we’re so close to achieving a goal that Memphians have dreamt of for nearly a hundred years,” said Tyree Daniels, MRPP board chair. “The new Tom Lee Park will be one of the best parks in America and will create a signature place that Memphis — and Memphians — deserve.” 

The public can get a look at the latest design on Wednesday, April 14th. Project designers from Studio Gang and SCAPE will present the latest details with new visuals and a question-and-answer session at the end. Register for the event here. http://bit.ly/TomLeePark0414.

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New Plan Would Slow Traffic on Riverside Drive

Memphis River Parks Partnership

A new plan would deliver a “safer, slower Riverside Drive” by introducing a number of traffic-calming interventions along the stretch bordering Tom Lee Park. 

The new plan was unveiled Monday by the Memphis River Parks Partnership (MRPP). Carol Coletta, MRPP president and CEO, said the design for the street meets the criteria set in mediation with Memphis In May International Festival and approved by Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland. 

If you’ve been on Riverside Drive, you know it feels too much like an expressway.

Carol Coletta, president and CEO of the Memphis Parks Partnership

“If you’ve been on Riverside Drive, you know it feels too much like an expressway,” Coletta said during a presentation Monday. “A lot of people think it’s an expressway between I-55 and I-40 but it’s not. 

“Expressways were never meant to he bet the shortest routes through a city. They were meant to be the fastest route through a city. The fastest route should not be Riverside Drive, the street that divides Downtown neighborhoods and those just beyond Downtown from its Riverfront.”

The new plan would focus on three crossings across Riverside: one at Vance, another at Huling, and one at Butler. At these would be pedestrian crossings to connect Tom Lee Park. These crossings would combine several elements to slow traffic and make crossing safer. 

Memphis River Parks Partnership

As motorists approach a crossing, they’d first encounter a speed hump, warning them of the crossing ahead. At the crossing, they’d find a speed table, a ramp larger than a speed hump. The tops of these speed tables would be level with sidewalks on both dies of the street. So, pedestrians would not have to step down as they crossed and the tables would be high enough to force slower speeds. 

Memphis River Parks Partnership

“You’ve got this combination of design mechanisms that force traffic to slow down,” Colletta said. “Otherwise, your car gets damaged and, maybe so do you because of the jolt you’ll feel.”

This combination is expected to slow traffic at the crossings to 15 miles per hour. 

Memphis River Parks Partnership

Spots for parallel parking along the street are also expected to slow traffic. Such parking will be available only in three “pods” along the western edge of Riverside. Together, these areas are expected to yield 60 parking spots along the street. 

To the immediate west of the parallel parking pods will be a median to separate cars parked there and a straight path for bikes and scooters. Coletta said that path is hoped to keep that faster traffic out of the main part of the park for strolling pedestrians.

Memphis River Parks Partnership

The new design also removes the decorative median strip from the center of Riverside Drive. Smaller medians will remain, though, closer to the three street crossings. 

Coletta said rules enforcement and traffic signs will still be needed along Riverside but hoped the new plan will slow traffic more naturally. 

“The more we rely on design to make streets safer, the better off we’ll be and the more likely we are to sustain the slow speeds that deliver safety,” she said.

Construction of the new Riverside Drive is slated to begin when construction of the new Tom Lee Park begins. Tha projects kicks off after MIM wraps up later this year. 

MRPP is expected to unveil updated plans and new drawings for Tom Lee Park during a call next week.   

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Reactions Divided on Riverside Reopening

Memphis River Parks Partnership/Facebook

Leaders of two Downtown neighborhood groups disagree on the recent reopening of Riverside Drive but both share concerns about safety on the street, especially in the wake of the shooting of a 13-year-old girl there last weekend.

Riverside Drive reopened permanently to full-time car traffic on Friday, March 12th. The street between Union and Georgia was closed to automobile traffic by city of Memphis officials in March 2020. That move was a part of the Safer-At-Home order to limit capacity at city parks, including Tom Lee Park on the Memphis riverfront.

At the time, the city’s engineering office said the closure was “for an indefinite amount of time.” The detour route had motorists using Crump Boulevard, Second Street, B.B. King Boulevard., and Jefferson Avenue.

Riverside was reopened to traffic during weekdays in August. But the parking lot to Tom Lee Park remained closed in an effort to limit capacity at the park.

The street has for years been closed for nearly two months each year for the Memphis In May International Festival.

Two men shot at each other from cars on Riverside when the street opened nearly two weeks ago. Bullets from one of those guns struck a 13-year-old girl riding a scooter near the street.

The reopening was pushed, in part, by the Downtown Neighborhood Association (DNA). Jerred Price, the group’s president, said in a statement that the closure was “problematic” for disabled Memphians who could not use Riverside to access the park. DNA said Front Street neighborhoods “grew very concerned” with the increased traffic.

The DNA said it convened a committee of other Downtown neighborhood associations. Nearly all in the group, “voiced their desire for the street to be reopened, the concerns of its closure, and how it adversely affects them and the people within their neighborhoods.”

”We are happy this taxpayer-paid-for byway is restored once again,” Price said in a statement. “However, we are not blind to the safety challenges and issues we face with this street. As with many other streets in our city, cruising, and law breakers make this street sometimes unsafe for pedestrians and cyclists.

George Abbott, director of external affairs with the Memphis River Parks Parnership (MRPP), said his group will “continue to work towards safer conditions on Riverside Drive.”

“We’ve been working for a number of years with stakeholders — the city of Memphis and Downtown Memphis Commission — on potential solutions,” Abbott said. “We look forward to putting some of those in place with the work that’s to be done on Tom Lee Park.”

In July and August 2020, the South Main Association (SMA) conducted a survey on riverfront safety and about Riverside Drive’s closure to motorized vehicles. The survey was intended primarily for SMA members, but the group left it open to the public. The survey got more than 300 responses from residents across Downtown.

SMA said, “as springtime activity increases around South Main, Riverside Drive, and the riverfront, we feel that now is the appropriate time to release the results.”
⠀
Here are a few takeaways of the survey:

• 60.1 percent supported temporary closure of Riverside

• 52.9 percent supported permanent closure of Riverside

• 61.7 percent said they felt safer with closure of Riverside

• 51.5 percent felt it was important for Riverside to be open during commuting hours

• 78.1 percent supported weekend closures of Riverside

• 59.9 percent said the closure of Riverside made Tom Lee Park more accessible

• 75 percent said they increased their visits to Tom Lee Park after the closure of Riverside

Eric Bourgeois, president of the SMA, said no notice of the reopening was given to South Main residents, a move that was “disheartening to say the least.”

“Since last fall, all Memphians had access to a vehicle-free Riverside Drive on weekends,” Bourgeois said in a statement. “This enabled people to enjoy bike rides, dog walks, strolls with friends, and immediate access to Tom Lee Park.

“Now, Downtowners have to, once again, hear the roaring of modified pipes as people with no regard for pedestrians zoom up and down the street until the wee hours of the night, especially on the weekends. As I’m sure you know, these activities resulted in a teenager being shot last week.

“I am concerned that the rushed reopening of Riverside Drive, combined with the springtime, pent-up energy of people eager to get back outside, will present more problems than solutions for those who live, work, and play in South Main and Downtown Memphis.”

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The Peace Project Brings Meditative Music to the Mississippi

Until 2017, Fourth Bluff Park in Downtown Memphis hosted a Confederate monument. After the removal of the statue’s last remnants, as over 30 trees were planted and connective pathways were installed, the space began to transform. That transformation has only been gaining steam, as evidenced by “The Peace Project,” a new sound installation produced with Memphis River Parks Partnership with actor, producer, and Deep Water Media CEO Bertram Williams and genre-bending songwriter and performer Talibah Safiya.

Readers may recognize Williams as Woddy from the Katori Hall-helmed drama P-Valley. He’s a native Memphian with experience working with community development, arts, and nonprofits. “I’ve produced, with my team, several concerts and tours,” Williams says. “I’m turning a corner in this exploration of sound healing. I say now that I’m a producer and I am dead set on exploring sounds and experiences that help people feel better.”

Bertram Williams

Williams’ partner, Safiya, is a Memphis-born singer, songwriter, and performer. “The Peace Project” is far from her first collaboration with Williams, though it may be their most ambitious work to date. “Last year, we did a 10-city tour,” she says. “This partnership with Memphis River Parks is a continuation of that work we started last year.”

The work of the most recent project was no small task. It required partnerships and communications across mediums and between different organizations. The work itself is a microcosm of what Williams and Safiya want the park to be — a meeting place for Memphians from all walks of life. “We’re told about the dark stories of our past and our city’s history of racism,” Safiya says. “We haven’t been given very much instruction on how to move forward, what it would look like to get healthier as a city. So the opportunity to have some form of guidance to be in the park that once had a Confederate statue, this is laying the foundation of what we expect to be for the future of Memphis. It’s really beautiful to be a part of.”

Safiya and a team of musicians recorded new music for the project at Memphis Magnetic Recording Co. with Scott McEwan. “I was able to sit in on some of the recording sessions,” Williams says, “watching her guide this group of musicians, some of whom had never worked together, to tap into a specific energy, one that is aligned with healing. Listening to the final product, I find myself feeling all the feelings but also nodding my head ’cause it’s good freakin’ music.”

Williams explains that Safiya maestroed an energy-guiding session with the musicians before they began recording. “We wrote some new ‘I Ams’ and ‘We Ares’ to create an experience of inspiration in the park,” Safiya remembers. “We also collaborated with some other writers in the city — some poets and storytellers — and made new content for this project.”

The team is trying to strike a balance between the sense of bliss music can convey and a healing force for introspection. “We’ve been joking throughout the process that we’re putting the medicine in the Kool-Aid,” Williams laughs. He explains that accessibility is important. Hence the public park setting.

“We spent a lot of time [in the park], even before the project,” Williams continues. “We know that space is frequented by our unhoused population. In this endeavor, too, we’ve been thinking about how to create something that would be a support to them.”

The speakers installed for “The Peace Project” are permanent additions to the park. They expect the individual recorded programs to have roughly three-month-long “seasons,” then to be cycled out, hopefully with new music from Safiya as well as new submissions from other local artists. “We imagine this being like a living organism,” Williams says.

“We need, now more than ever, to be able to gather, and to be able to do it safely. So if we can add an additional layer of love and healing, I think we’re on the right track.”