CaVaLa Park

This ½ acre park, once a parking lot under NYCDOT and Port Authority jurisdiction, will soon become a green and welcoming gateway to Lower Manhattan.

This contemporary design pays homage to some of Manhattan’s oldest pocket parks such as Jackson Square and Bowling Green.  It will serve visitors to SoHo, and Canal Street as well as the TriBeCa community and the financial district.

The center of the park is a 114 foot long sculptural water fountain by artist Elyn Zimmerman.  Water cascades from a granite tower down through a weir into three interconnected locks of water. Each lock contains a span of still water that travels over a series of stepped rapids as it descends to the next level. A sloped lawn rises up to meet the southern side of the fountain.

A double row of canopy and street trees line the perimeter of the park, defining the triangle in a very open and exposed site.  Three large planting beds are filled with low flowering shrubs and colorful perennials. An evergreen hedge along all three sides contains the ornamental plantings and will provide year round interest.

There will be a continuous perimeter fence on the outside with three major entrances at each corner.  These entrances will be marked with granite columns containing images illustrating the different transformations of the site’s history.