New Memphis riverfront flyway observation deck expected to draw 1 million+ new visitors a year

MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE, UNITED STATES, June 6, 2024 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The Mississippi River is one of North America’s natural wonders. Stretching more than 3,000 miles across 10 states, the Mississippi has a storied history, culture and folklore all its own.

Yet, until now, there has been no single signature location to experience the river’s majesty.

The Memphis Flyway, which broke ground this morning, will open in 2026. The one-of-a-kind attraction will be the only free and ADA-accessible observation deck on the Mississippi River. It is expected to draw more than 1 million new visitors a year, with a location in downtown Memphis easily visible from two interstates, I-55 and I-40.

The Memphis Flyway will become the premier place to experience the Mississippi River along the Great River Road, which follows the Mississippi River from its source in Minnesota to its delta at the Gulf of Mexico.

The 218-foot-long distinctive curving observation deck is the latest project of the nonprofit Memphis River Parks Partnership, which opened the adjacent $61 million Tom Lee Park in September 2023. The Memphis Flyway, like Tom Lee Park, has been designed by Studio Gang and SCAPE.

The Memphis Flyway amplifies conservation, tourism and heritage in a single project:
• Memphis was founded in 1819 because of the fertile land’s location on the Mississippi River.
• As the latest addition to the Memphis riverfront, the Flyway will attract new visitors to Memphis.
• The Memphis Flyway will conserve the unspoiled habitat below the structure for a wide variety of species, including the at-risk Monarch butterfly, and offer visitors a view of the more than 100 species of birds that fly past the Memphis riverfront each year.

The Memphis Flyway is being funded by the Tennessee Heritage Conservation Trust Fund, the U.S. Economic Development Administration, the Tennessee Department of Transportation and an anonymous donor.

More on the Memphis Flyway
The Memphis Flyway is a ground-supported canopy boardwalk supported by three steel mast column bundles. The trail is to be built on the side of an escarpment. It extends along the SE-NW direction (an alignment with the 140-degree to 320-degree direction measured relative to true north) for a total length of approximately 218 feet. The Memphis Flyway presents a slightly curving main span 105 feet long followed by an overlook span. The overlook span splits into two arms and forms a loop around the supporting column bundle. The deck presents a triangular cross-section with chord, depth and aspect ratio that change along the span and is equipped with wooden railings on both edges.

About Memphis River Parks Partnership
Memphis River Parks Partnership is a nonprofit public-private partnership that works with and for the people of Memphis to trigger the transformative power of their river. The Partnership has raised $80 million for public parks and assets along the Memphis riverfront over the past seven years.

The Partnership’s properties include Tom Lee Park, a 31-acre park named in honor of Memphian Tom Lee, who couldn’t swim but saved 32 people when a sternwheeler capsized in the Mississippi River in 1925. Tom Lee Park is surrounded by racially and economically stratified neighborhoods, presenting Tom Lee Park with the rare opportunity to create public space to bring together people from all walks of life. Tom Lee Park was just named one of the top three urban design World Changing Ideas by Fast Company magazine. Since its opening nine months ago, Tom Lee Park has drawn 500,000 visitors from more than 128 ZIP codes.

More information about Memphis River Parks Partnerships is available at memphisriverparks.org.

Kim Cherry
Cherry and Company Public Relations
+1 901-230-8121
email us here
Visit us on social media:
Facebook
X
Instagram