Our place contains much that is easily visible and much more that takes some closer looking.
If you walked Main Street during the last two weeks, you likely noticed a new construction site about halfway between campus and Walawála Plaza. Set to open in late Spring, the new Heritage Park will become the heart of Main Street and will be a venue for the entire community, “continuing the expansion of public gathering spaces that have been created downtown in recent years.”
Community leaders have been thinking about how to enhance this central location in our city and the last few years have created the conditions to bring these ideas to reality. Background about the goals and priorities to make the space more accessible, welcoming and enjoyable can be found here. The City of Walla Walla is using some of its federal stimulus dollars to completely overhaul this space. The project is slated to finish in May and no set opening date is scheduled due to potential weather-related timeline adjustments.
The change from the previous design is dramatic. Early in the planning, the city posted amazing daytime and nighttime “fly-throughs” of the new space that can be watched online (although the final design does not have the cantilevered walkway over Mill Creek as was originally imagined).
Andy Coleman, Parks and Recreation Director for the City of Walla Walla, said that by next Spring, Whitman students will be able to use the park for studying and socializing as well as attending the many events and performances that will take place here.
Hidden behind the construction fencing is a unique site in Walla Walla—the “Windows on the Past” installation, a project whose overarching goal was to “build intercultural understanding in the creation of a compelling, permanent public artwork designed to celebrate the community's multicultural ancestors.”
While it is currently not possible to access the wall, you can do so virtually, thanks to early work to put the stories about the panels online.
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