FTLA was selected by the Baltimore City Department of Recreation & Parks to design engaging gateways at the three corner entrances to Patterson Park, a 150+ acre park in southeast Baltimore that provide space for community connections, programming and festivals.

Patterson Park, one of the oldest parks in Baltimore City, has a rich history spanning some 300 years. The park offers numerous recreational features such as public pools, athletic fields and playgrounds, a boat lake, a skating rink, pavilions and acres of open space for strolling and picnicking. It also contains historic architectural gems like the Victorian Pagoda and Latrobe Marble Fountain.

The FTLA plans for the gateways include colorful native or adaptive plantings, brick walkways paved with the original 1853 park bricks and the creation of a tree canopy to demarcate the entrances. The plans also call for a restoration of the massive sandstone columns at each entrance. The objective of the design is to create a more defined gateway that beckons visitors to the park. FTLA’s plans achieve this by extending plantings further out onto the corners, improving curb ramps at crosswalks and insuring ADA accessibility, and replacing large areas of aging concrete with brick.

Preliminary designs were submitted to the City in spring 2008 and will allow for input from the Friends of Patterson Park, a non-profit membership organization that works to promote, protect and advocate for this community treasure. The Patterson Park Gateways are slated for completion in 2009.