Liberty State Park, a vast public waterfront, is a world-class park awaiting transformation. Despite the park’s prime location and adjacency to one of the most densely populated counties in the US, it misses opportunities for green open spaces accessible to locals and visitors. The People’s Park Foundation called upon Gehl to imagine how Liberty State Park could further evolve as a seminal public space for Jersey City.

In the 1977 master plan for the park, the people of Jersey City registered their interest in recreation, alongside restoration, as a central component of a completed Liberty State Park. Since then, the State of New Jersey, led by the Department of Environmental Protection, has proposed a plan for the interior portion of Liberty State Park that focuses on environmental restoration. Leadership at DEP and other state entities have voiced an interest in re-introducing recreation in a portion of the park, approximately 50 acres of the 230-acre site. Promoting recreation would ultimately serve the health and well-being of community members as well as opening up the park for further uses and becoming a staple public space for the county. 

Creating a great park is about more than delineating space on a plan. It’s about understanding people’s needs and desires, and ensuring community members are centered in the design process. With people-first function established, form follows. Liberty State Park is for Jersey City first and foremost, ripe for improved connectivity and invitations to all city residents, no matter their zip code. What’s more, the park has the potential to be a signature destination for the wider region, and a link to a network of flagship waterfront spaces.

The vision for Liberty State Park presented here balances recreational, cultural, and educational facilities and the natural landscape surrounding them. It responds to the needs of Jersey City that coaches, educators, and community leaders have identified as pressing for the health, well-being and opportunity of the CIty’s youth and residents.

The Gehl team focused on a 50-acre outparcel to the southwest of the park interior, outside of the NJDEP’s identified restoration area as well as a couple of high-impact, strategic outparcels in the park interior: a gateway outparcel at the nexus of Johnston and Jersey Avenues and a waterfront outparcel located off Freedom Way.
Gehl’s vision and concept plan for these sites built upon work to date and was based on the data collected from local engagement, workshop sessions, surveys, and existing conditions assessments that revealed an uneven distribution of amenities and an unmet demand amongst locals for recreation and athletic facilities. Gehl’s vision for Liberty State Park balances recreational, cultural, and educational facilities and the natural landscape surrounding them. It responds to the needs of Jersey City that coaches, educators, and community leaders have identified as pressing for the health, well-being, and opportunity of the city’s youth and residents. balanced everyday recreation, competitive athletics, arts, culture, and education. 

Beyond presenting conceptual and dynamic plans for Liberty State Park that balance recreational, cultural, and educational facilities and the natural landscape surrounding them, the team served as a conduit for continued, open dialogue with the local community and DEP leaders. By fostering discussions for how the park can best serve nearby neighborhoods, the broader city, and the wider region Gehl is ensuring that the park continues to evolve to meet the city’s diverse and evolving present and future needs. Needless to say, this is just the beginning for Liberty State Park.