Photo by AP Photography
Great cities have great parks, and Phoenix should be no exception.
For that reason, the process of re-envisioning Margaret T. Hance Park into a communally and culturally significant space is underway.
The team leading the redesign started the project in July of last year and will present its second Concept Plan for the park next Wednesday, Jan. 22 at the Phoenix Art Museum.
This is the second time the public will have the opportunity to view the proposed design. The first draft, introduced in November, includes recommendations made by the Hance Park Steering Committee such as a skate park, a permanent performance space, food concessions and much more.
(See November’s Master Plan Concept Presentation here)
The light rail, ASU downtown campus, stabilization of historic neighborhoods and a new generation of people wanting to live in urban areas is giving Phoenix a second chance to create a downtown community, said David Krietor, CEO of Downtown Phoenix, Inc. and a member of the Hance Park Master Plan Advisory Committee.
And, “if you’re going to have a community, you’ve got to have great park facilities,” he said. “Hance Park gives us that real opportunity to have a great urban park.”
Krietor said that there were two separate visions for the 32-acre lay of land: one as a meeting place for the surrounding neighborhoods, and the other as a “signature park,” or a space that—while also serving the community—would act as a regional park and host major events.
However, “The designers came back with both,” he said. “They split the park in two, and they tried to marry these two ideas together.”

Hance Park Master Plan
The presentation next week will contain a second Master Plan Concept design taking into account the public comments received since November.
Though the public meetings have been well attended, Krietor said the next step in the process is accelerating the momentum to get people interested in the park so that these designs are realized.
He said funding for the project so far only includes the design process. Additional funds would need to be raised to transform the project from an idea into a reality.
“It’s about taking this planning and design process and getting people excited about it so the park becomes a priority,” he said.

You can keep up to date on the Hance Park Master Plan redesign by liking the Facebook page, Facebook.com/HanceParkMasterPlan, or visit this website here.