Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Study underway for Mud Island




Here is the latest scoop on the Mud Island project. This came from the RDC newsletter:


"The Riverfront Development Corporation (RDC), in conjunction with the City of Memphis, is preparing to embark on a public process to create a comprehensive land use study for Mud Island. The ultimate goal is to allow the land on Mud Island to flow more seamlessly into the surrounding area and provide the types of amenities that help Mud Island to reach its full potential.

The RDC board of directors has selected Looney Ricks Kiss Architects (LRK) to lead the planning effort. LRK is known throughout the region and across the nation as a world-class planning firm with nearly two decades of experience in this type of work. They also have extensive knowledge of Mud Island based on their work on HarborTown. LRK will work in conjunction with The Consilience Group, which will facilitate the public input process.

“Public input is the foundation of this study,” said Traci Sampson, principal of The Consilience Group. “We want to be sure whatever happens at the park is meeting the needs of the community.”

Input for the land use study will be gathered through a series of public meetings in different sites around the city and from web surveys online, Sampson added.

Primary funding for this project is provided through a federal Planning Assistance to the States Grant through the US Army Corps of Engineers with matching funds from the City of Memphis, Hyde Family Foundations, and Memphis Tomorrow. The project is slated to kick-off in February 2008 and is expected to take six to eight months to complete."

Let's make sure the skate community is well represented at these meetings. Join our emailing list for updates so that you will know when these public meetings will be held. We need the skate community to show up to these public meeings in mass like the Fairgrounds demo. Let's show Memphis that A LOT of us want a world class skate park on Mud Island!!

3 comments:

Andrea said...

I think this is a brilliant idea and hope that the skateboarders, and their families get involved so that RDC know that Memphis is ready for this.

I have heard good things about Louisville, but would it not be fantastic if Memphis had the best and biggest skatepark in the US.

Thank you Aaron for your hard work and come on everyone show your support for the skatelife memphis and the skatepark.

take care

Anonymous said...

It's hard to imagine why the RDC needs a land use plan. It just needs to add a skate park to what's there now. It looks like they are overcomplicating it for no reason except to jack up consultants' fees.

Aaron said...

Trust us, we COMPLETELY understand your frustration. While it is warranted, this is all part of the "normal" government process.

Hang in there. RDC is moving as fast as it can.