Rendering of the Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Centennial Park Design
Image Credit: Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates (MVVA)
Rendering of the Ralph C. Wilson waterfront park along the Detroit, Michigan, river.

Location:
Detroit, Michigan

Client:
Detroit Riverfront Conservancy

Partners:
Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates (MVVA)

Service Areas:

Our Expert:

The Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Centennial Park, located along the Detroit River between the Ambassador Bridge and downtown, was designed to create a space that is as diverse, inventive, and community-minded as the city’s population. As part of the Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates (MVVA) team, LimnoTech provided expertise in hydrology, hydraulics, ecology, and permitting to support the park design.

The Challenge

The Detroit River is one of the most powerful landscape experiences in the Great Lakes region with the river’s waterfront in continual development for the last 20 years. On the west end, West Riverfront Park was one of the last segments that remained undeveloped, and in 2017, it was prioritized by the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy as an opportunity for a signature waterfront park. A design competition was held to select a team to transform the site into an exceptional park for Detroiters. In 2018, the park was renamed the Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Centennial Park following a $50 million donation from the Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation, and the MVVA team was announced as the design competition winner.

The mission of the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy is to transform Detroit’s international riverfront into a beautiful, exciting, safe, accessible, world-class gathering place. The Conservancy’s ultimate vision is to develop five and a half miles of riverfront from the Ambassador Bridge on the west to Gabriel Richard Park, east of the MacArthur (Belle Isle) Bridge.

How We Helped

MVVA’s design was selected to transform the open space on the Detroit waterfront into a community gathering space. Elements of the design include transforming a rigid sea wall into a varied shoreline that will allow vegetation to flourish and create habitat for birds and aquatic wildlife. A series of rocky beaches, vegetated edges, preserved sea wall, freshwater wetlands, and a two-acre Water Garden will provide new experiences and connections to nature for people of all ages and abilities. Areas of the park will also have gardens, groves, promenades, and plazas, along with sheltered sports courts and a large event lawn with expansive river views. In addition, the park features an extensive playground highlighting species native to the Great Lakes.

As part of the design team, LimnoTech provided expertise in hydrology, hydraulics, ecology, and permitting. Hydraulic and water quality modeling support was provided throughout the project, including modeling to support the overall design concepts, regulatory compliance, and design component selection. LimnoTech provided the design for aquatic habitat features, including topographic and material variations, submerged wood features, a habitat wetland at the river’s edge, and the water garden. We reviewed and advised on all design features that will influence river hydrodynamics and water quality.

LimnoTech also provided water quality monitoring support to help guide park design decisions. Water quality in the Detroit River at the park site is impacted during wet weather by combined sewer overflows (CSOs), which are a mix of stormwater and domestic sewage that enters the river when the capacity of the wastewater treatment infrastructure is overcome by excessive rainwater or snowmelt entering the system. Many untreated CSO outfalls remain upstream of the park site, which will impact the water quality when they discharge into the river. The LimnoTech Team sampled during wet and dry weather conditions to determine the expected CSO impacts at the park. Contaminated sediments also impacted the park site. LimnoTech conducted sediment sampling and helped develop a strategy to remove or remediate contamination and to partner with the USEPA as a non-federal project sponsor for Legacy Act Funding for the construction of the contaminated sediments remedy and aquatic habitat restoration.

The Outcome

Park construction began in May of 2022 and is slated for completion in 2025.

Projects

Return to top

Start typing and press Enter to search