?EUR??,,????'??We wanted a simple, bucolic space for downtown we felt was lacking,?EUR??,,????'?? said Landscape Architect David Motzenbecker of Oslund and Associates.

The Guthrie Theater?EUR??,,????'???s innovative new home opened in June. Founded by Sir Tyrone Guthrie as a reaction to the commercialization of Broadway, the Guthrie was considered the first significant regional theatre in the United States when its original building opened in 1963.

Minneapolis’ new $125 million Guthrie building designed by French architect Jean Nouvel was five years in the making and replaces the Guthrie’s first home next to the Walker Art Center, which needs the space for an expansion.

The new Guthrie?EUR??,,????'???s adjacent park design consists of about four winding concrete paths, including a 10-foot bike path, that stretch from 2nd Street South to West River Parkway. One path would spiral up to an observatory on a central hill ascending 25 feet above the green space.

?EUR??,,????'??The paths were done to represent historically the way the water would flow down to the river,?EUR??,,????'?? Motzenbecker said.

A boulevard of 6- to 8-inch linden trees would line 2nd Street South between 11th Avenue and the Guthrie Theater Service Area. Trees scattered along the paths and throughout the park would consist of 5 to 8-inch-diameter maples.

Funding for the park comes from a $5 million donation by United Health CEO William McGuire. The McGuire Foundation would lease the land from the city of Minneapolis and privately maintain the park for 10 years.

City officials have expressed interest in using the land for a park even though long-range plans for the area recommend the site for housing development.

Motzenbecker said he would like to see park construction begin in the fall.