Agenda - Council Work Session - 04/20/2004

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Key Component - Town Center Park Town Center Park is .the largest dedicated park space within Ramsey Town Center. Town Center Park preserves green space for recreation and the natural filtration of stormwater, and provides connections as a corridor for wildlife. As a visual relief from the built environment, this parkland will enhance Ramsey Town Center's livability, and as a result ensure its lasting vitality. Town Center Park will be pastoral character, with maintained edges, interactive landscapes, and recre- ational facilities for the adjacent r~eighborhoods. Town Center Park will have a rolling topography, a variety of water elements, and a reconstructed wetland classroom for ecological education. All of these park features are connected by a network of trails that will eventually link to the regional parks and trails system. Key Component - The Civic Square Located at the heart of the downtown Core and inspired by the great civic spaces of the world, the Civic Square is Ramsey's "marketplace" where its citizens gather together, encounter one another, and enjoy the benefits of town life. The design of the'Civic Square is a thoughtfully integrated mix of plazas, pedestrian streets, well-crafted landscapes, gardens and water elements which will provide year- round interest. The edges of the space are defined by a mix of food and entertainment venues and a variety of retail shops. The Civic Square is central to these uses, and will be the place in town to watch people and be seen. Key Component - Neighborhood Parks The two neig[~borhood parks of Ramsey Town Center offer distinct differences in character. The north park contains a DNR Protected Water as a significant natural resource, and the recreational ameni- ties for the park have been tailored to suit. Features include trails, boardwalks, an open meadow for informal play, picnic areas, benches, and a hill for winter sledding. The southern neighborhood park accommodates the needs of the neighboring fitness center to the west, charter school to the east, and the residential neighborhoods by providing ballfietds and structured activity space. This park may also include complementary amenities such as small picnic areas, rest- rooms, storage, and spectator seating for the ballfields. Key Component - Downtown Commons The Downtown Commons offers respite from the bustling activity of the Civic Square. Marking the intersection of Town Center Park and the downtown core, this park will have an elegantly simple character. Pavements and plantings create a pedestrian promenade leading from the Civic Square through the publicly accessible Winter Garden Atrium, culminating in a dramatic water display, public art installa- tion, signature landscape planting, or a combination of all three. Once through the Winter Garden, the Commons itself is envisioned as a series of terraces descending to a central pool or lawn. In winter months the Commons could function as an outdoor skating rink, while in the summer fountain jets could make it a grand but restful space. Parks, Trails, Open Space Proposal 5 Rarnse7 To~vn Center LLC