Welcome to Midtown’s
Art Park & Skate Garden
where creativity, community and sustainability thrive
Midtown’s newest community space is more than just a park—it's a dynamic, multi-use destination designed to bring people together. With a unique blend of art, skate culture, and environmental innovation, the Midtown Art Park & Skate Garden will be a vibrant hub for all ages, celebrating the creative spirit of our neighborhood while fostering connection, collaboration, and sustainability. From skateable art installations to green spaces and fruit orchards, this park will redefine what a community park can be, providing a place where everyone can gather, create, and grow.
Over a decade ago, the vision to transform the City of Jackson’s Benjamin Brown Park into a vibrant Art Park in Midtown was born—but for various reasons, it remained unrealized. As part of our ongoing Creative Economy efforts, we revisited this idea to see if it still resonated with the community today. With support from an AWS ChangeX planning grant, we partnered with Archimania to conduct a feasibility study and hosted community meetings and visioning charrettes to explore the potential of bringing this long-envisioned project to life.
Community-Driven
Make an inclusive and accessible space for all members of the neighborhood with walking paths, skate-able elements, lights, and shade.
Create a space for community expansion and opportunities for positive activity
Create something aesthetically pleasing and as a welcome to Midtown with visibility from the train line
Preserve and strengthen links between the community by creating a space for gathering
Provide space for fruit trees
Provide a strategy for flood mitigation
What we heard…
A Shared Goal…
Build a multi-use park for diverse groups of all ages, with a modular design setting up opportunities for future expansion, while blending functions into one cohesive space;
…that promotes and strengthens Midtown, by providing a common space for many activities encouraging conversation and collaboration between different communities in Midtown;
…and becomes an example for sustainable building practices through stormwater and flood mitigation, combating food insecurity by providing fruit trees, and skateable infrastructure;
CONCEPT
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Every space needs room to function properly in a way that does not impede the other.
We achieved this while finding opportunities for the spaces to bleed into each other but remain separate when needed; all while being surrounded by fruit trees and landscaping to provide soft boundaries and shade.
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15’-0” grid for trees to grow as required and sets up opportunities for:
- easy connection for potential expansion to adjacent lots and Benjamin Brown Park with cohesive aesthetic
- phasing simplified due to modular design
- easy placement of sculptures or art installations
- cohesive aesthetic between all spaces
- create connection to residential community
VISION
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SITE PLAN
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AERIAL VIEW
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PHASED INSTALLATION
Phased Installation Budget
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Zone 1
Fruit Tree Orchard
Budget: $7920
✅ Installed! 40 trees - funded through the support of Fruit Tree Planting Foundation, Arbor Day Foundation & Amazon
Additional Needs:
24 additional trees ($4,000)
Orchard Stewardship ($150/yr per tree)
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Zone 2
Skate Garden
Budget: $440,000
Includes:
- topo survey
- site prep
- concrete work
- landscape architect
- engineering
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Zone 3
Arts & Social Space
Budget: $620,000
Includes:
- site prep
- sidewalks
- landscape
- furniture
- canopies
- signs
- art installations
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Zone 4
Market Space
Budget: $80,000
Includes:
- site prep
- sidewalks
- furniture
- canopies
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Zone 5
Bioswale/Drainage
Budget: $100,000
Includes:
- topography survey
- site prep
- concrete work
- landscape architect
- engineering
