Riverside Park

Slipping between slumber and wakefulness, I often found myself at Riverside Park. My car parked near the water, the Detroit River lulling me into a few hours of sleep before work. Riverside Park in those days was a place of contrasts. It was a haven, yet it felt like the wild west. Parties stretched until dawn, fishermen ignored regulations, and police were frequent visitors. Today, Riverside Park is transformed. The new additions, completed around 2019, are truly remarkable. The Tony Hawk-funded skatepark buzzes with activity. Soccer fields host youth programs and adult leagues. Basketball courts echo with the sounds of pickup games. It’s a vibrant hub within the Detroit park system. This revitalization extends to the older section of the park too. Modern bathrooms, elevated pathways, and new landscaping. Riverside Park, a 29-acre gem on Detroit’s southwest riverfront, at the foot of West Grand Boulevard, offers a beautiful view of the Ambassador Bridge. It’s a far cry from the Riverside Park I knew, a place where an odd whale statue stood next to the old Detroit News warehouse, where mountains of dirt mysteriously appeared in the parking lot, where benches were always on the verge of collapse. But even with the incredible transformation, the view, that breathtaking view, remains. The Ambassador Bridge still dominates the skyline, especially at sunset, with the city lights twinkling beneath it. The Gordy Howe Bridge, the former Harbor Terminal Building site, and Zug Island’s blast furnaces stand as silent witnesses to the passage of time. Riverside Park is no longer a place where I catch a few hours of sleep. It has become a destination, a vibrant part of the city’s rebirth. A place where memories are made, not just sought in the quiet hours before dawn.