Whether it’s the Jordan Valley Park, coffee, shopping, or just the downtown feel, the appeal of Springfield’s downtown for high school students has already taken the first step to doubling in size. More green space, more retail, entertainment and a whole new side to our downtown is appearing through Environmental Protection Agency grants.

   Phase one of the new Jordan Valley Commons is Springfield’s first step to this dramatic growth that will take place over the years.

   A giant piece of abstract art by Greenworks Inc.  lights up the entire corner of Trafficway and National. The “french fry” lights, and the national flags of Springfield’s sister cities Tlaquepaque, Mexico, and Isesaki, Japan, frame the entrance to a new public green space, taking the place of the former quarry site. This new park, over time, will grow in size to include a greenway trail, a water feature and the possibility of a carousel. The city is planning to take places that cannot be used by the people, such as the quarry, and transform them into public places for all.

   The city of Springfield has plans for more spacious and quiet green areas for all ages to enjoy while still being in the heart of downtown.

    “The city owns approximately 16 acres and a formal rail yard,” said Olivia Hough, senior planner for the city.

    A large portion of this land will be turned into a giant green park called the West Meadows of Springfield. 

    “The rail yard is divided into eight sights and we have sights one through four and should have those sights cleaned up by the year,” Hough said.

    This land will be cleaned up and cleared off, and the Jordan Valley Creek will be risen above its confined concrete channel to flow freely throughout the land for everyone to enjoy. A trail will be intertwined around the “daylighted” creek and railroad bed with green space, complete with different types of vegetation such as native prairie grasses. The plan is that this meadow will be vast enough to become a place to socialize or a calming place of solitude for the frequent visitors of downtown. 

   This same hope goes to the East Meadows, which has the same theme as the West Meadows and more.

   The East Meadows, which will be
located near Phelps Street, will also have
a free-flowing Jordan Valley Creek. A greenway trail will be created in the midst of this green open space to connect the Drury Campus to the Ozarks Technical Community College campus. An amphitheatre-type setting will be created in the midst of this green space, which could be used for seating or as a meeting place.

   Parks and green space are not the only additions being created downtown. The Innovation Design Entrepreneurism and Art (IDEA) Commons will be a whole new downtown area designed to attract high school students.

    “The IDEA commons concept originated a couple years ago … from the Jordan Valley Innovation Center,” said Matt Schafer, senior planner with the Department of Planning and Development.

     JVIC is a Missouri State University center that provides hands-on experience for its students and helps business opportunities as well. MSU is also a key player in the IDEA Commons.

   The difference?

  “The new research park would be blended with a variety of uses … they didn’t want to focus on just innovation,” Schafer said. “The idea is that the university can partner with private firms, and by doing so the students are able to obtain real-world experience and put what they are using in the classroom into practice while the firms are able to capitalize on that talent. They can utilize the students to develop products.”

    The IDEA Commons will be an urban research park for students, which brings together residential, office, retail, entertainment, and industrial land uses in 88 acres. Bound by Chestnut Expressway, Walter Street, Campbell Avenue and Jordan Creek, a new coffee shop, work out studio, or restaurant could be here.

   Historical buildings are seen downtown without knowing their history or when they were made. The locations students frequent have been around for decades. These projects however, will be a massive addition to the growing city we know now, and will be something we can see grow in our lifetime; unlike most downtown areas around the country. The beginning of these projects has already started. Within the next 10 to 20 years, these massive parks and commercial areas could be completely finished. These additions will change our downtown by turning places of blight into areas filled with something to give back to residents of Springfield in our generation.