Bowling Green’s river town roots are growing back.
The city is constructing a new 70-acre park along Barren River in the downtown area.
Brent Childers, Director of Neighborhood and Community Services, has spent the past eight years working on a master plan for the riverfront development.
“We’ve been successful in the past few years of really activating downtown when you think about Fountain Square, the ballpark, SKyPAC, Circus Square, that core area," Childers said. "We’ve looked at this for several years, of how do we activate the riverfront?”
The master plan unveiled this week includes a boat ramp and kayak launch, a tree canopy walk, rock climbing, a playground, and event spaces.
Childers says the entire plan will take decades to develop and is dependent on funding.
The first phase will begin immediately with developing the edge of the riverfront with access to the water. That project will be funded through a $750,000 grant from the National Park Service with a city match of $1.5 million.
The entire development of the riverfront is expected to cost more than $50 million.
Childers says he expects developing the riverfront will be transformative for downtown Bowling Green and spur economic development.
