A construction project undertaken in 1990 returned the Mall Concert Ground to a tree-canopied promenade by reintroducing the planting islands and replicas of the Vaux benches.

The Central Park Conservancy, founded in 1980, administers Central Park with the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation. The Conservancy, which is a not-for-profit organization, was formed out of a sense of pride to restore, maintain, and program the City?EUR??,,????'???s foremost scenic landmark. This very successful coordination of public and private resources has inspired similar partnerships in this country and throughout the world.

In the early years of the park restoration, a number of projects were designed by consultants under the supervision of the Conservancy?EUR??,,????'???s small team of designers and planners. As this team grew and diversified, more projects were designed in-house, using a collaborative decision making process. Landscape architects work with planners, historians, preservationists, and horticulturists as well as fund raising, operations and community relations experts, to ensure that a wide range of views and constituencies are considered in defining and solving problems. This forum has enabled the Conservancy to develop innovative solutions for a broad range of issues and problems, from detailing rustic bridges to setting park policy.

Basing their design on photographs taken in the 1870?EUR??,,????'???s, the wood was milled and the aluminum posts were cast. The Conservancy?EUR??,,????'???s restoration crew installed the benches and provided the finishing touches.

Today in an effort to preserve Bethesda Terrace, molds have been kept of all newly carved elements and a pre-mixed recipe has been formulated to recast any vandalized or missing ornamental masonry. Conservancy funded in-house restoration crews now perform routine masonry cleaning repairs not only on Bethesda Terrace but throughout the park. Graffiti is removed by a graffiti removal crew as soon as it appears. This discourages vandals and maintains the Park in a standard of which the citizens can be proud.

Central Park is an inspiring demonstration of a community effort to restore part of their heritage. To date over $70 million has been raised through the bonding together of over 50,000 individuals, foundations and corporations in the community to support restoration. Over 3,000 volunteers participate annually in helping maintain the park and to educate visitors. 176 acres of the park have been regreened and one third of the Park landscape has been restored and is now fully maintained thanks to the combined efforts of the city, the conservancy and the people in the community.