We got some great feedback from the Greenway communities on the upcoming Clarity Parks Project: Lafitte Greenway Plaza. This project is a $40,000 rapid-build project meant to transform the former parking lot of the old Brake Tag Station into a vibrant and welcoming pedestrian plaza; and set the foundation for future improvements to the site. Learn more about the project here.

Over 230 people weighed in on the design via paper survey, online survey, and our public meeting on August 11th. Here's what we heard from you:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

August 3, 2020

Friends of Lafitte Greenway and NORD begin work on Clarity Parks Project: Lafitte Greenway Plaza

NEW ORLEANS, LA -- Friends of Lafitte Greenway and the New Orleans Recreation Development Commission (NORD) are creating a new pedestrian Plaza on the Lafitte Greenway in Mid-City this fall. Working in partnership with leading national place-making nonprofit, the Project for Public Spaces and Claritin® through the Clarity Parks Project, the group will begin the transformation of the driveway of the former Brake Tag Station where the Greenway meets the Bayou St. John into a vibrant and welcoming pedestrian plaza with public art, landscaping, stormwater management infrastructure, farmers markets, and more. This $40,000 rapid-build project has just entered the design phase, and is set to be complete this November, responding to the key need for more outdoor public spaces in the midst of the Coronavirus pandemic.

By Katherine Hart 

May 13, 2020

A ray of good news has appeared through the gloom of the coronavirus pandemic: More New Orleanians are getting on their bikes and enjoying local trails and greenspace.

It’s a phenomenon many have noticed since the stay-at-home restrictions began, whether they’re among those getting out to exercise or among those observing the world from their porch or front window . Now there’s data to support it. A sustained rise in biking and walking counts has been recorded throughout the stay-at-home order by the University of New Orleans Transportation Institute.

The institute records data on pedestrian and bicycle activity from permanent, continuous counters in key locations throughout the region .

“It appears that many people are discovering or rediscovering the bicycle during this time of significantly disrupted travel behaviors and traffic patterns,” said Tara Tolford, research associate and pedestrian and bicycle outreach coordinator at UNO Transportation Institute.

By: Kathy Finn | May 31, 2019

Source: MyNewOrleans.com | Full Article

In a city where land available for commercial development is scarce, it is refreshing to see a strip of green space not only preserved, but transformed into a magnet for new activity, which is what is happening along the corridor that stretches from New Orleans’ Treme neighborhood through Mid-City.

The former railroad right-of-way now known as Lafitte Greenway is slowly becoming an oasis of outdoor fun and relaxation thanks to a 2.6-mile bicycle path, with playgrounds and pedestrian-friendly features that have taken shape there. Since the corridor’s opening in 2015, about 320,000 cyclists and pedestrians access the greenway annually, according to automated people counters monitored by local researchers.

Now, developers who recognize the growing appeal of the green space have begun re-purposing adjacent sites and renovating ramshackle structures into new housing, cafés and bars, with plans to make the Greenway a place where people will routinely come for a refreshing break in the heart of a bustling city.