Lafitte Greenway facts for kids
The Lafitte Greenway is a special path in New Orleans, Louisiana. It's a great place for people to walk, run, and ride bikes. This path stretches from Louis Armstrong Park all the way to Bayou St. John and even further! It opened in 2015, but this area has been used for travel for more than 200 years.
Exploring the Lafitte Greenway
The Lafitte Greenway is about 2.6 miles long. It starts near the Municipal Auditorium in Armstrong Park. This starting point is called a trailhead. The path ends at the Alexander Street trailhead.
The Greenway connects many different neighborhoods. These include Tremé, Lafitte, and Mid-City. It helps link areas from the French Quarter to Lakeview.
Along the path, you'll see many native plants. There are also special areas called bioswales. These areas help manage rainwater in a smart way. The City of New Orleans also has plans to bring new businesses and growth to the area around the Greenway.
The Lafitte Greenway officially opened on November 6, 2015. Most of the money for building it came from special grants. These grants were given after Hurricane Katrina to help rebuild the community. The first part of the project cost about $9.1 million.
How the Greenway Came to Be
This area has been a travel route for New Orleans since at least 1794. The land where the Greenway is now was once used by the Norfolk Southern Railroad. Before that, it was home to the Carondelet Canal.
For many years, passenger trains used this route. They traveled to a station on Basin Street. In the 1970s, people started thinking about new ways to use this land. Civil rights activists like Rudy Lombard and architect Clifton James had early ideas for the area.
In 2006, the city sold a large part of the land. It was sold to a film company. But the plans for a big movie studio never happened. So, in 2010, a group called the Trust for Public Land helped. They made a deal to return the land to public ownership. This meant it could be used for everyone.
Starting in 2005, local activists began organizing annual hikes. Hundreds of people joined these hikes each year. They walked over the rough land where the path would be. This helped raise awareness and support for the Greenway project.
What's Next for the Greenway?
The City of New Orleans wants to make the Greenway even longer. They plan to extend it another half-mile. This extension would go into the Lakeview neighborhood. It would reach Canal Boulevard.
This new part of the path would run next to an active train track. This track is still used by a local brickyard. The city is currently talking with Norfolk Southern about these plans.
