A new $1 million grant from The Buhl Foundation has put wind in the sails of a full redesign of the Allegheny Landing, sending a shipload of play-based improvements toward the riverfront park. But there’s still some murky water to navigate: The modernization project requires another $1 million of funding. The grantmaking nonprofit donated the funds to Riverlife — a nonprofit dedicated to local riverfront development — on Tuesday, Oct. 1. Mindy Cooper, principal of Austin-based landscape architecture firm dwg., says the goal of the redesign is to create a space for Pittsburghers of all ages. “In the ’80s — when this park was first visioned in the forms that it’s in now — it took a step forward in that it brought art in, so there’s engagement from an imaginative point of view, but my personal opinion is that the art that’s here today really engages adults,” Cooper said.Cooper spoke at a moderated discussion on “The Power of Play in Urban Landscapes” hosted by Riverlife on Friday, Oct. 4. She was joined by Jane Werner, executive director of the Children’s Museum; Sallyann Kluz, executive director of Shiftworks and local artist and professor John Peña. Rendering courtesy of Austin-based landscape architecture firm dwg. Click image to enlarge.Allegheny Landing’s main features are two 1984 sculptures by Ned Smyth — “Piazza Lavoro” and “Mythic Source” — that represent Pittsburgh’s contributions to American labor history.“That’s a serious, adult-y thing,” Cooper said. “Fast forward many decades, and we see families wanting to come for a ball game and wanting to engage with the river. We’ve stepped forward in time, and now there’s a real need for play.”Riverlife and its project partners like dwg aren’t envisioning traditional playground features like jungle gyms and swings for the space, though. Instead, they’re pursuing “artful play.” Cooper says that a slide comes with a single, prescribed purpose. Spaces for artful play encourage someone’s imagination to create their play space.“Growing up, there was a tree on my elementary school playground that I was convinced the root structure represented a house, and there were individual rooms,” Cooper says. “Each recess, I would go out and I would use the pine needles to sweep the rooms. These are the things that we need to encourage through our park design.”Preliminary designs for the park show tile art along the preexisting walks, a wooden stage atop the flood plain and new “tough art” sculptures that are thought-provoking and sturdy enough to withstand play, though no specific artist or theme has been chosen for the tough art fixtures.The designs also suggest water-spray features between the two office buildings in the park’s northern corners.“We heard from both kids and adults alike that these are things they wanted to play with, and will be a part of this space hopefully in the near future,” Cooper says.Gavin White, Riverlife’s director of projects and planning, says that the park’s designs are about 60% complete and, with the recent grant, the project is more than 50% funded.“I would hope that we’ll be done with the design for the park by spring of next year, and then it’s a matter of … if we have the funds in place,” White says.White clarified that much of the remaining design progress is out of Riverlife’s hands: Most of the conceptual work is finished, but Riverlife has begun conducting land and cost studies ahead of running the circuit of city approvals, which could take at least six months.“That’s where my timeline gets a little fuzzy because it’s not up to me,” White says. “We’re going to be applying for all the zoning permissions that we need, and the flood plain permit and all the regulatory stuff to make sure that this is a nice, safe, new park.”Upkeep has been a continuous part of the conversation surrounding Allegheny Landing park. A previous Buhl Foundation grant helped Riverlife restore the Landing’s public docks last year after a 2018 snowstorm left them unusable. In 2016, Riverlife worked with other local organizations to bring native plants to the park and restore and relocate the Ned Smyth sculptures at the spot.“Piazza Lavoro,” a 1984 sculpture by Ned Smyth, represents Pittsburgh’s contributions to American labor history. Photo by Roman Hladio.NEXTpittsburgh reported at the time that “the area had fallen into disrepair” over the years. Riverlife CEO Matt Galluzzo raised the same point to panelists last week.“What elements do you believe are crucial for maintaining a sense of playfulness in public spaces over time?” he asked the panelists. “How do you sustain those pieces?”“Let go,” Cooper responded. In terms of the physical changes that may come over time, Cooper says it’s important to maintain the same principles of playfulness and open-mindedness that are currently being set for the space.But to keep the park from falling into disrepair once more, there needs to be community investment, Cooper says.“I think investment comes out of ownership, and seeing your own ideas or your own needs reflected in the space,” Cooper says. “When people stop seeing feeling safe in a space, you feel that regression and that retraction.”The post Play-based improvements to Allegheny Landing receive $1 million grant appeared first on NEXTpittsburgh.