CITY PARK GETS SWAMPED Studio 4: From the gutter to the gulf New Orleans, LA Spring 2009 This project investigates the use of New Orlean’s City Park to manage the stormwater flowing through the Orleans Canal, which runs along the park’s west side. The Orleans Canal is fed by Pumping Station No. 7 which drains its own district no. 7 as well as a portion of drainage district no. 2. City Park, at 875 acres, is the largest park in New Orleans, and has sufficient area to collect and store all the stormwater that flows from Pumping Station No. 7. Although heavily programmed in the southern portion, the area north of the interstate is largely undeveloped. I propose a series of side flow weirs to direct stormwater from the canal to three ponds within the northern portion of City Park. At these ponds, I propose a vegetative strategy to filter and absorp water as well as supporting habitat.
AERIAL OBLIQUE: CITY PARK , ORLEANS CANAL AND SWAMP RESTORATION
Species such as black willows have enormous water absorption rates and baldcypress trees tolerate flooded conditions and poor soils. Both have phytoremediation potential and are native to the region. Cypress swamps are also places of recreational potential as well as recharging depleted groundwater.