What planners euphemistically refer to as Downtown Pittsburgh's green living room will get a new carpet and utilities this summer, preparing it for the decorators to perform an extreme makeover in future years.

	A drawing of improvements at the front of Point State Park. Click photo for larger image.

Point State Park, a national historical site, will undergo a $4.5 million upgrade to install new electrical and water lines and permanent utility hookups for vendors to use during major events.

The project also will change the design and use of the four-acre front of the park, nearest Downtown; replace existing asphalt sidewalks with terrazzo and bluestone edges; and eliminate the main stage in the larger part of the park closer to the Point.

The most dramatic change will be filling in the old Fort Pitt Music Bastions, 8-foot-deep trenches that simulate the original fort's walls, although they are in the wrong location and contain few 18th-century bricks. A ground-level granite outline will be installed in their place.

Work is scheduled to begin in earnest in August, after major summer events are over, but some minor work could be done earlier before and between events if it can be completed without disrupting them.

The project is the first phase of park renovations developed by a public-private partnership among the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, the Riverlife Task Force and a handful of local foundations.

The group prepared a master plan for refurbishing the park in stages, beginning this year, followed by $21 million in work proposed for future years, to include rebuilding the fountain, installing boat docks and extending the Allegheny Passage trail system along the city sides of the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers.

Lisa Schroeder, executive director of the Riverlife Task Force, said the park's master plan had two goals: to highlight the historical significance of the 36-acre site, where forts were built first by the French (Fort Duquesne) and then the British (Fort Pitt) during the French and Indian War, and to open it up for new users such as bikers, boaters and daily visitors by installing additional entrances and amenities.

When the park was built in the late 1940s, it was designed for passive use, Ms. Schroeder said. Over the years, it has become a major focal point of Downtown events such as the Three Rivers Arts Festival and Three Rivers Regatta. Those events draw crowds and activities not designed into the original plans, leading to repeated damage to the park.

This year's work will prepare the park for activities today and in the future, she said.

For example, new underground electrical and water lines will be installed from Downtown to the Point, to provide permanent utility hookups for vendors so they don't have to drag in their own generators and water supplies, and water pumps used to operate the fountain will be revamped.

In addition, a new irrigation system will keep the grass green through the dog days of summer.

The front of the park will be converted into a large, flat space. The space will feature the outline of the fort, complete with LED lighting and engraving about the history of the site; a small stage pad in one front corner, facing into the park, for daily lunchtime concerts and space to erect a temporary stage for events such as the arts festival; and new park benches and decorative street lights along the rebuilt walkways.

"This becomes a whole new multipurpose Downtown park while it follows the original landscape plans," Ms. Schroeder said. "The space is designed to be as flexible as possible."

Landscaping featuring native plants such as mountain laurel, cranberry bush, bowman's root and mayapple will be placed throughout the park, along with many new trees. Internet connections also will be available throughout.

The reflecting pond under the portal bridge will be reactivated, with new decorative lighting to highlight the small waves.

New landscaping will be done west of the portal bridge and the paved area will be eliminated in favor of grass.

The overlook on the Allegheny River side of the park will have new benches and chess tables.

The biggest change in this area of the park will be the elimination of the permanent stage, used by the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, in particular, for the city's Fourth of July celebration.

Ms. Schroeder said most events such as the Dollar Bank Jamboree country music festival prefer to bring their own stages. State and city officials will develop guidelines for event sponsors to follow when they want to use their own stages.

"We think there are many more and much better ways to accommodate a stage without causing so much damage," said Ms. Schroeder, noting that the location of the existing stage and deliveries to it have damaged or destroyed many trees over the years.

The $1 million for the master plan and design of the first phase of the project came from a state grant and contributions from the Heinz Endowment and Richard King Mellon, Alcoa and Pittsburgh foundations. Grants and contributions also are paying for the first phase of work.

When this phase of work is done, Ms. Schroeder said, "I would say we have all of the pieces in place" for the rest of the master plan. The key is obtaining the $21 million to move ahead, she said.