The Toyota Trinity Stormwater Park
A downtown Evansville, IN urban green space.
In 2023, Circular Venture Lab began assisting University of Evansville student, Robert Lopez, on his plans for a downtown urban green space with an underground stormwater mitigation system.
Robert conceived the idea in 2017 as a Junior at Bosse High School. He presented the idea at UE’s High School Changemaker Challenge and the concept was well-received. He began his studies and extensive work on the urban park through UE’s ChangeLab program in 2019.
In 2021, after years of work by Lopez in his UE ChangeLab class with the Center for Innovation & Change, Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indiana donated $350,000 to the project. The funds are to be utilized for above-ground community amenities and historical site preservation through physical and visual media. The donation allowed for naming rights of this space, now known as the Toyota Trinity Stormwater Park.
An additional $28,000 has been raised in private funds. Including the substantial donation from Toyota, funds raised at this time total $378,000. The project will be ready to be sent for bid to a Park Developer, to be determined by the city, in May of 2024.
The Toyota Trinity Stormwater Park is a first of its kind collaboration, unique to Evansville’s changemaker spirit, that could quickly become a model for how other cities can work with youth, utilities, the private sector, and parks departments to reimagine green space in downtown. The creation of this sustainable park is testament to the resilience and dedication of one student, and the multiple partners who worked with him along the way.
We’ll have regular announcements and updates on the park as it continues to progress. Click below to donate and explore other ways you can get involved with the project!
Importance of the Park
Nature-based solutions are concepts that bring nature into cities. In many cases, these include ideas for urban green spaces that are inspired or derived from nature. These solutions may be considered generally as actions which protect, sustainably manage, and restore modified ecosystems. These spaces help cities mitigate and adapt to climate change, enhance human well-being, biodiversity, and resource recovery.
Ideally, these green building sites provide multiple ecosystem services. These embody resilient and regenerative ways to deal simultaneously with challenges ranging from climate change mitigation to the reduction of pollution and ground temperature. They may increase flood safety through integrated water sensitive urban design solutions, reuse or display previous site material, and promote local economic systems. The overall intent of urban green spaces is to promote sustainability goals, outdoor comfort, healthy living environments, and wellbeing in cities.
History and the Park’s Future
After Lopez’s concept was presented and encouraged by UE and multiple stakeholders, an urban site was identified on a city block where the decommissioned and now demolished Holy Trinity Church once stood. The church, originally built in 1849 and initially designated as the future Catholic Cathedral in Evansville, burned down over Easter Weekend in 1950. It was later rebuilt and actively used until 2000, when it was decommissioned by the Catholic Archdiocese of Evansville.
In 2017, the Evansville Water and Sewer Utility purchased the site and designated it as the future location for the Trinity Stormwater Park.
The park will include a sophisticated underground water retention system to mitigate flooding and heavy rain events, preventing an overload on the existing sewage system. The design slopes downward to collect runoff within the park and has several runnels leading into surrounding city blocks to capture as much runoff as possible. The Toyota Trinity Stormwater Park will reduce the amount of combined sewage entering the Ohio River by 26 million gallons annually.
The dual-purpose park provide valuable benefits to the community. The topside of the park will incorporate many reused materials from the original site, including six stained glass windows commissioned in 1865, each prominently displayed in installations around the park. The park will feature a plinth made of reused granite slabs, and a bench wall constructed from the limestone that outlined the exterior of the Trinity Church.
In 2021, after years of work by Lopez in his ChangeLab class with the CIC, Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indiana donated $350,000 to the project, and an additional $28,000 has been raised in private donations. The funds will be utilized for above-ground community amenities, described in the video above, and for historical site preservation through physical and visual media. The donation allowed for naming rights of this space, now known as the Toyota Trinity Stormwater Park (TTSP).
The City of Evansville began construction of the stormwater mitigation system in 2022. As of October 2023, the below-ground system has been completed and the city-block sized park will be ready for final bidding in May/June 2024.
The park will become a beacon for environmental stewardship, collaboration with community youth, and what can happen when the city partners with a business and a local University. It will immediately become the biggest greenspace downtown.
Ongoing Developments
We’ll post regular updates and public announcements about the the park as it continues to progress to completion, anticipated in Fall of 2024. Check back often for more history about the site and photo updates!
