This years roundup of landscape projects and news stories highlights the nontraditional: from a skiable art museum, a floating wetland that doubles as a classroom, to a land remediation project, these projects stand out for being so much more than the average neighborhood park. What will come of the Hudson Highlands Fjord Trail?Arguably the most contentious landscape project AN covered in 2024 was that of the proposed Hudson Highlands Fjord Trail, a 7.5-mile-long linear park designed by SCAPE that seeks to connect Cold Spring and Beacon, New York. Since it was first announced the project has received pushback from local organizations. While the project touts making a pathway for hikers more accessible, there are concerns locally that the area could become more overrun with tourists and daytrippers than it already is.A public comment period for the Hudson Highlands Fjord Trail is now open, through February 2, 2025. Pending environmental review the project is anticipated to be completed by 2032.Forge Projects land remediation work restores relationship between site and historyAlso in Hudson Valley, a land remediation project is underway on the ancestral lands of the Stockbridge-Munsee Band of Mohican Indians. Forge Project, founded in 2021, is restoring the principles of Indigenous land stewardship on a 60-acre site. Forge Project transitioned its leadership model to be Native-led, which included forming an Indigenous steering council and developing a memorandum of understanding with the Stockbridge-Munsee Tribal Council. It is working with a team of tribal members, herbalists, landscape architects, botanists, meadow specialists, and volunteers to reintroduce native plants to the landscape.Weiss/Manfredis West Conservatory at Longwood Gardens is designed to host plants from the Mediterranean region. (Sahar Coston-Hardy/ESTO/Courtesy Longwood Gardens)Longwood Gardens West Conservatory openedThe long-anticipated opening of the West Conservatory at Longwood Gardens made its debut this year. Weiss/Manfredi, alongside landscape architecture firm Reed Hilderbrand, designed a building and gardens adapted to the traditional Crystal Palace conservatory look, using arboreal steel columns that twist in irregular patterns.Features such as louvers and roof shades keep the Mediterranean plants housed inside in a desirable climate all year round. In the center of the gabled structure, the architects opted for a water feature that mimics a series of canals, rather than the more traditional, singular pool.Plans were announced for a skiable outdoor art museumSoon at Powder Mountain in Eden, Utah, skiers will zip past artworks by James Turrell, Jenny Holzer, Arthur Jafa, Nancy Holt, and others. The mixed-use concept designed by Reed Hilderbrand and Johnston Marklee promises a skiable outdoor art museum replete with sculptures and a welcome center. Elizabeth Street Garden stays put, for nowElizabeth Street Garden, a tranquil outdoor sculpture park in bustling Manhattan, has been the subject of a redevelopment proposal for several years. This fall the nonprofit that oversees the park received an eviction notice; the notice was later amended to pending and the nonprofit was granted a stay until the case is revisited in the Appellate Division Courthouse of New York State in February 2025.Developers and city entities hope to see the land used for affordable senior housing. Thousands of letters in opposition of this redevelopment have been sent to the Mayor, HPD, and the Governor along with proposed alternative sites for the affordable senior housing complex.Metropolitan Park adds playgrounds and sports field to an area brimming with sports and entertainment facilities. (Courtesy SHoP Architects and Field Operations)In Queens, Metropolitan Park could transform parking spaces into park spaceIts all falling in place for the purpose-built stadium for NYCFC to be realized in Willets Point. The area in Queens is teeming with New York City sports venues, and Mets owner Steve Cohen hopes to capitalize on that even more. This summer he revealed his vision for Metropolitan Park, which would transform parking lots from the old Shea Stadium into park space.Visuals shared by the design team, SHoP Architects and Field Operations, show the 50 or so acres of parking outside of Citi Field largely replaced by green lawns and circuitous pathways. The proposal also calls for a hotel, food hall, (and if its lucky) a casino.The upgrade would expand sidewalk widths by 46 percent on Fifth Avenue between Bryant Park and Central Park. (Courtesy New York City Hall)Park Avenue and Fifth Avenue to get major makeoversTwo major thoroughfares in New York Citys street grid will be subject to revamps in the coming years. Park Avenue and Fifth Avenue will be redesigned to be more pedestrian friendly.In August, New York City Department of Transportation and Mayor Eric Adams announced an RFP requesting proposals from landscape firms to green-up Park Avenue. And two blocks west a reimagined Fifth Avenue is a bit farther along with Field Operations, Sam Schwartz, and Arcadis all on board to realize a vision that could widen sidewalks and reduce lanes of traffic. A comprehensive plan will ensure the resiliency and longevity of Atlantas Piedmont ParkWhile Piedmont Park is not Atlantas largest park it takes up 200 acres within the city in a forest. This year park officials announced that the Frederick Law Olmsteddesigned park would be subject to a comprehensive plan led by Nelson Byrd Woltz, and local partner Perez Planning + Design (PP+D) and Kanics Inclusive Design Services. The last time the park underwent a review and update of this magnitude was in 1995.The review will look at structural enhancements aimed at strengthening the parks resiliency and consider how accessibility and safety can be improved. A maintenance plan for each of the diverse environments located around the park will also be conceived. The plan coincides with a planned expansion that will add 4 acres to the green space. Piedmont Park will soon link up with The Beltline and assume an expanded Atlanta Botanical Garden.The Harbor Wetland in Baltimore. (Philip Smith/Courtesy National Aquarium)Ayers Saint Gross designed a floating wetland and outdoor classroomWho said green space had to be on land? In Baltimores Inner Harbor, Ayers Saint Gross designed a 10,000-square-foot floating wetland. The aquatic landscape allows visitors to walk on water and learn about wildlife. Over 30,000 grasses and shrubs coalesce at the new wetland, combined with water aeration technology. Since opening, fish, ducks, dragonflies, and Maryland blue crabs have paid a visit to the project.Sasaki and Studio MLA delivered a waterfront park near the Port of Los AngelesIn February, the Wilmington Waterfront Promenade in Wilmington, California opened to the public. The 9-acre site owned by the Port of Los Angeles was long underutilized, given its proximity to industrial infrastructure. As more and more residents settle in the area, projects like this one by Sasaki and Studio MLA signal a sea change, adding much-needed recreation space for jogging, picnicking, and playing.