Redesigned Tom Lee Park ready for debut
Nearly three years after work began on the $62 million redesign, the Downtown Memphis space along the Mississippi River will have a formal opening Saturday, Sept. 2. Here’s what to expect.
There are 32 article(s) tagged Tom Lee Park redesign:
Nearly three years after work began on the $62 million redesign, the Downtown Memphis space along the Mississippi River will have a formal opening Saturday, Sept. 2. Here’s what to expect.
“I hope we will all treat it with honor and respect because Tom Lee Park will change the way outsiders view our city and how we see ourselves.”
Memphis River Parks Partnership president and CEO Carol Coletta talks on “Behind The Headlines” about the road to the September opening of the redesigned Tom Lee Park.
The dedication was prompted by photos Nichols took in the park, including of sunsets on the river that the canopy overlooks.
The first of the giant wooden animal sculptures arrived in Tom Lee Park Tuesday, Nov. 15. The animals, all native to the Mississippi River Basin, are another sign of the bustling park’s construction activity.
Council members will discuss the proposed Tourism Development Zone 5% surcharge — which would be charged on hotel guests’ bills — at an 8:30 a.m. committee session Tuesday, Nov. 15.
The council also takes preliminary votes Tuesday, Nov. 1, on a plan and financing arrangements for an ambitious remake of the Klondike community in North Memphis.
The Carlisle name follows a $1.5 million donation by the developers to the $62 million Tom Lee Park redesign. It honors the late Gene Carlisle, the family patriarch who called the One Beale real estate “the best piece of dirt in Memphis.”
Negotiations between the festival and the partnership hit a rough patch this week over the amount. Mayor tells MIM and Memphis River Parks Partnership to work it outRelated story:
Crews working on the $62 million redesign are on seven-day-a-week schedule. The Memphis River Parks Partnership is hosting events next month to field proposals for events in the park as well as food and beverage vendors.
The president and CEO of Memphis River Parks Partnership says on “Behind The Headlines” that Tom Lee Park’s new look will debut next summer, but it will be available before that, for the Memphis In May International Festival.
The Memphis City Council members could close out its 2022 budget season Tuesday, June 7, with a set of votes on a new property tax rate and operating and capital budgets.
The trees planted along the riverbluff are the first installment of 1,000 trees pledged by Valero refinery and planted by volunteers from Valero.
The ARPA funding is in place of Tourism Development Zone revenues the city pledged as part of a $10 million contribution toward the $62-million redesign of Tom Lee Park currently underway.
Council members also will meet Marvell Mitchell, the CEO of a local software company, who is the new leader of the city division that keeps track of how much business city government does with minority contractors and businesses.
The plaintiffs are taking the city and Memphis River Parks Partnership to court over the $61 million Tom Lee Park redesign.Related story:
The plaintiffs, known collectively as “Tom Lee Park for All,” claim the park’s $61-million redesign violated a mediation agreement with Memphis in May.
The Shelby County Commission Scorecard tracks the votes at the final meeting of 2021 that approved pay raises for the commission, county mayor and sheriff. Also approved: Giving $6.7 million toward the redesign of Tom Lee Park.
The votes at the last meeting of 2021 will determine if the commission itself should get a pay hike and whether the mayor and sheriff also get raises. If approved, the raises would take effect after next year’s county elections.Related article:
Memphis River Parks Partnership President Carol Coletta called the riverfront path “one of the most important parts of the park.”
Artist Theaster Gates talked Thursday about the installation having the same impact “The Bean” and the Tamir Rice Pavilion – both in Chicago – have had with the public finding the ultimate uses for them to make them destinations.
“Even though Memphis may seem like a smaller city or less important in the world of art, I think that the project is one of the most significant opportunities for me,” the artist said.
Barbecue fest was actually held at Liberty Park in 2011 after flooding on the Mississippi River necessitated it be moved.
The long awaited permit clears the way for the park’s redesign to begin moving dirt and creating new features in Tom Lee Park after a three-year planning process that has seen the plans change over time.
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