Creating A Future

Every generation is presented with an opportunity to contribute to history, to leave behind for subsequent generations something more glorious than what it inherited.

Restoring the Glory; The Campaign for Forest Park is such an opportunity. Over the next decade, we will have invested $100 million in public and private funds to return this unique St. Louis landmark to its former glory. We will ensure that a resource integral to St. Louis for more than 125 years remains grand and glorious for our children and their children after them.

In 1993, the City of St. Louis began developing a master plan for Forest Park that would conserve its size, beauty and quality for future generations while satisfying the many diverse needs of today's park users. The two-year planning process involved thousands of individuals, neighbors, institutions, benefactors, and other groups who share a desire to restore the quality of this vital asset for the entire community.

The resulting Forest Park Master Plan is a model for sustainability. It emphasizes sound technical and environmental designs that are economical to maintain. It transforms fragmented lakes and ponds into a "river-like" flowing water system. It simplifies the road system, making access easier for all users. It reforests the park with 7,500 trees. It strengthens the park's infrastructure and reinforces the park's role as home to the region's most important cultural institutions. The plan protects the character of the park. It encourages diversity and balance in park uses. It is realistic and attainable.

Restoring the Glory; The Campaign for Forest Park is our generation's promise that Forest Park will be as memorable for future generations as it has been for the past 125+ years. It is our opportunity to re-create a park more beautiful, more accessible, and more inviting than ever.

On April 30, 1904, President Theodore Roosevelt threw a switch to light up the wonders and glory of the Louisiana Purchase Exposition in Forest Park for all the world to see. Today, through this campaign, we can relight the wonders of Forest Park, and create tomorrow's memories.