River Garden + River Line Celebrate One Year, Host All-Day Community Celebration with free yoga, crafts, dance, music, kayaks, and Explore Bike Share
MEMPHIS — River Line, the 5-mile bike/pedestrian trail connecting the riverfront from Wolf River Greenway to Big River Crossing, and River Garden, the newest and most activated park on the riverfront, are celebrating their one-year anniversary on November 9.
Memphis River Parks Partnership, the Fourth Bluff collaborative and event partners invite the entire community to River Garden and River Line for an all-day “birthday party.” Some of the park’s most popular programs — from yoga to arts and crafts and dancing — return for a reprise as the community looks ahead to the future of the riverfront.
“River Garden is a beautiful jewel of a park on our riverfront,” said Carol Coletta, President & CEO of Memphis River Parks Partnership. “People traveling north and south between River Garden and Beale Street Landing is something we’ve never seen before, but it’s happening thanks to the allure of the new park and the addition of the River Line. It’s just a thrill to see so many Memphians discover what our riverfront can mean for themselves and their city.”
To celebrate the anniversary, kayak and bike rentals will be free all day. Memphians are invited to pick up a kayak at the Fourth Cup in River Garden or ride the River Line with free rentals from any Explore Bike Share station — seven of which are on the River Line itself.
“As we see increasing activity along the riverfront, it’s no surprise to us that the stations along the River Line are some of the most used in our entire network,” said Explore Bike Share Executive Director Trey Moore.
Since opening, River Garden has played host to nearly 150 hours of free and inclusive programming that has welcomed more than 8,000 Memphians. Funded by the national Reimagining the Civic Commons initiative and local funders including the City of Memphis and Hyde Family Foundation, River Garden has set a new standard for public space design, management and programming in Memphis.
“This is a celebration of Memphis,” continued Coletta. “And it is an illustration of what we can achieve together on this riverfront. River Line is connecting the riverfront and providing car-free access for Memphians from across the city, and River Garden is already serving as a national model for practicing daily what most cities still struggle for — safe, beautiful, welcoming public space happily shared by people of different ages, incomes and races.”
“Our Yoga Downtown,” a seasonal weekly yoga series in River Garden produced by the Downtown Memphis Commission, welcomed between 100 and 200 people each week, 42% of whom, on average, neither lived or worked Downtown. On a single night, 32 different zip codes were represented in River Garden.
“Our Yoga Downtown is Memphis at its best: spirited, inclusive, and accessible to all,” said Charlie Baxter, yoga instructor of DMC’s “Our Yoga Downtown” in River Garden. “The Mighty Mississippi represents our history as well as our progress, and practicing in River Garden, alongside the river, offers us a perfect reflection of who we are and who we are becoming. It’s hallowed ground.”
WHO: Memphis River Parks Partnership, Reimagining the Civic Commons: Memphis
WHAT: River Garden + River Line Birthday (full schedule below)
WHEN: Saturday, November 9, 2019
WHERE: River Garden in Mississippi River Park, Jefferson Avenue + Riverside Drive
MORE: facebook.com/memriverparks
