Content area
Full Text
Forest Park in St. Louis, located on the city outskirts, is one of the oldest and largest urban parks in the United States. Its 1,375 acres harbors the Municipal Theatre Association, the Saint Louis Zoo, the St. Louis Art Museum, the Jewel Box, the Missouri History Museum and the St. Louis Science Center. Not only do people enjoy its cultural attractions, but they also partake in all types of sports--golf, tennis, cycling, baseball, boating, fishing, handball, roller blading, walking and more. Forest Park is also badly in need of renovation, with crumbling roads and an aging infrastructure but its funding has shrunk relative to inflation, leading to a 'bare bones' maintenance. But, Forest Park's rescuers are already at work.
Forest Park opened on June 24, 1876 and was later presented to the world on April 30, 1904 during the World's Fair as President Theodore Roosevelt flipped the switch, lighting up the Louisiana Purchase Exposition, located in the park's western half. Since that time, Forest Park has taken a back seat to other concerns and been greatly changed. Forest Park had been part of the River Des Peres Watershed, a natural-flowing, functional river system, but over time, the River Des Peres was buried. Some of the original green space was covered by new buildings, athletic fields, golf courses and paths, and Highway 40 and Forest Park Parkway were constructed along the park perimeter. These changes greatly altered the park and disturbed the natural systems originally designed and envisioned as a natural wilderness. Along with those changes came a huge increase in the sheer number of visitors, from 2.5 million visitors in 1896 to 10 to 12 million visitors in 1997.
In 1993, the City of St. Louis began work on a master plan to renew Forest Park and preserve it for future users, while meeting the needs of present families. The city involved thousands of people in the two-year planning process. Individuals from the surrounding neighborhoods, park institutions and other interested parties sat on the 69 person Forest Park Master Plan Committee, which assisted in gathering public opinions and ideas, as well as developing recommendations to be given to the 18-member Executive Committee. Through a series of public meetings and ongoing public communications, the Master...