Inventory & Analysis

At the beginning of the master plan process, a thorough inventory and analysis was completed to understand the existing conditions and opportunities for the park. The following pages document the work that was undertaken in the following areas:

• Access & Connectivity

• Programming

• Natural Systems

• Culture & Art

Access & Connectivity

Walker-Branch Park is accessed by two main entries along W 16th Avenue and Harlan Street, each with a parking lot. In addition to these main entries, path access points stem from Fenton Street, the Sloan’s Lake Drainageway, and the Edgewater Civic Center parking lot. The park has a number of existing pathways, however connections to certain portions of the park are still lacking. Specific challenges and opportunities related to access and connectivity are summarized below:

Challenges

• Internal circulation within the park is fragmented, lacking routes to walk around the park continuously and direct paths to certain amenities

• The existing path to the park from the Edgewater Civic Center is convoluted, stemming off of the parking lot The connection does not provide a strong relationship between the Civic Center and the park

• The lack of pedestrian crossings into the park, particularly across Harlan Street, pose safety concerns and limit connectivity to the surrounding neighborhoods

• Limited connectivity from neighborhood to the north due to drainage way

Opportunities

• Create designated pedestrian crossings across Harlan Street to improve safe access to the park

• Improve vehicular and pedestrian entrances to create gateways at all entry points

• Create walking loops internal to the park and clear connections to all park amenities

• Develop hierarchy of pathways to provide a variety of experiences

• Create additional bike and pedestrian connection across the drainage way

Programming

The programming at Walker-Branch Park currently includes picnic pavilions, a soccer field, a softball field, 2 sand volleyball courts, 2 half basketball courts, 2 playgrounds, a skate park, and open lawn areas. Some of these programs are highly utilized and very successful, while others see very limited use. Specific challenges and opportunities related to programming are summarized below:

Challenges

• The location of the main park pavilion presents visibility and safety concerns

• The volleyball courts are currently underutilized

• The softball field is currently underutilized

• The park pavilions are outdated

• The park’s playground elements are outdated and the play pits present ADA concerns

Opportunities

• Update and relocate picnic pavilions as key gathering spaces with good visibility

• Consider community gathering space for events and community activities to expand types of programming in the park

• Build upon success of skate park with more active uses and programming

• Consider active park uses south of Edgewater Civic Center that complement current uses in Civic Center and enhance the programming of both

• Update playgrounds and equipment to reflect the desires of the community and improve play opportunities for all abilities

Natural Systems

The natural systems of Walker-Branch Park are heavily influenced by topography and drainage. A large detention area is located at the north end of the park, which drains into the Sloan’s Lake Drainageway. The park slopes towards the detention area, with a continuous swale running along the eastern border of the park. A number of mature trees currently exist, but their locations and shade cast do not always benefit the park’s amenity areas. Specific challenges and opportunities related to the park’s natural systems are summarized below:

Challenges

• The detention area acts as a barrier between the main core of the park and the trail that runs along the Sloan’s Lake Drainageway

• The design of the detention area and the Sloan’s Lake Drainageway is highly functional from an engineering perspective, but offers very little ecological benefit or enhancement

• The topography of the site currently limits access routes and circulation

• The park is currently dominated by turfgrass with a few shrub planting areas, contributing to mowing maintenance and higher water use

• Large evergreen trees restrict viewsheds and present visibility concerns within the park

• The park currently utilizes a series of pipes and inlets around the basketball courts and central playground area for drainage purposes

Opportunities

• Enhance and diversify tree species while adding additional canopy cover and shade

• Convert some of the turfgrass areas that are underutilized to native grasses and plantings

• Incorporate native plantings with ecological and educational benefits

• Daylight some of the parks drainage through creation of a second swale and integrate into the park as a natural amenity

• Enhance the existing swale, managing invasive species and modifying planting to incorporate additional native amenity species

• Enhance the connection to the Sloan’s Lake Drainageway through improved pedestrian connections and tree planting

Culture & Art

Walker-Branch Park incorporates cultural references to the site’s historic use as a tree farm, and also features a small memorial telling the story of the park’s naming. In addition, art is featured throughout the park. The 40 West ArtLine weaves through the park with a series of art pieces along its route. Specific challenges and opportunities related to culture and art are summarized below:

Challenges

• The plant identification markers featured throughout the park are subtle and not well-defined

• The playground pits shaped in the form of leaves are only recognizable in plan or aerial view, are not identifiable from a park user’s perspective, and create geometries that make park maintenance difficult

Opportunities

• Integrate more art into the park to build off of the 40 West ArtLine and bring more people to the park

• Add spaces to support performance art, programming, and events

• Consider including seasonal lighting and ephemeral art elements

• Explore extending Edgewater Civic Center’s civic and cultural programming into the park to create a stronger connection

• Continue to integrate additional art and improve the 40 West ArtLine in coordination with the 40 West Arts District

Public Process & Alternative Evaluation

Public input builds the fundamental framework for the master plan. During the master planning process, public meetings, stakeholder meetings, and online surveys played integral roles in developing alternative concepts and selecting the preferred concept. The public meetings and surveys were promoted through multiple channels to capture a larger audience, such as email notification from Lakewood Together, Facebook, flyers, and yard signs throughout the park.

Public Meetings

The master plan process hosted a total of two public meetings at key milestones. The first public meeting focused on existing site analysis, opportunities, and challenges. The team presented two concept alternatives and gathered feedback from the community on their likes and concerns for each concept. During the second public meeting, a preferred concept was shared with the community. The preferred concept included most desired elements from each of the two concept alternatives. The public was asked to prioritize the proposed elements to help inform park phasing.

Stakeholder Meetings

Two stakeholder meetings were held throughout the process to solicit feedback and help guide the park design. Stakeholder members consisted of council members from the City of Edgewater and the City of Lakewood, and members from Edgewater’s History, Arts, Recreation and Parks (HARP) Board.

Online Surveys

Online surveys were implemented in order to reach a broader audience. The first online survey was launched before the first public meeting to gather existing park usage data and community aspirations for the park. The second online survey worked in conjunction with the second public meeting to bolster community feedback on the preferred concept plan. The surveys were highly visual and were bi-lingual.

Community Input Key Takeaways

A number of key takeaways emerged through the process and shaped the master plan design, recommendations, and prioritization.

• Improve connections - pedestrian crossing on Harlan and connection on Fenton through Sloan’s Lake Drainageway

• Celebrate existing trees - the community expressed desires to preserve existing trees

• Recognize and expand 40 West ArtLine - build upon the 40 West ArtLine and potentially add more art installations around the park to celebrate art and culture

• Dog park - With Edgewater and eastern Lakewood lacking dog parks, the dog park continued to be a highly requested program in the park

• Community space - provide space for the community to gather for celebrations, community events, and everyday use