City unveils ‘bigger, better’ plan for downtown Lincoln park

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – The city is expanding its plans for the South Haymarket Park after acquiring two properties at Seventh and L streets.

The initial plan took up about 6 acres near Seventh and N streets. The park will now span about 8.5 acres.

With the extra space, the city will add more playground equipment, a pavilion with patio space and a new location for the skate park.

There will also be a new parking lot at Sixth and L streets and a connection to the Chris Beutler Bike Trail.

“It will be bigger, better, and more impactful than anything we could have ever imagined,” said Maggie Stuckey-Ross, director of the Lincoln Parks and Recreation Department.

Stuckey-Ross said shovels will be in the ground one year from now. The park will be open two years from now, in spring 2026.

“We are so excited to grow the footprint of South Haymarket Park and make this park happen for the community,” she said.

The total cost for the park is now expected to be $25 million.

The cost includes two endowments that will go toward maintenance and activity programming once the park is finished.

The city will be putting $10 million toward building infrastructure for the park and will be looking for grants and donations to help cover the rest.

Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird said the city has gathered about $9 million so far.

Dawson McGahan, a student at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, plans to visit with his friends when it’s all done.

“I have a bunch of friends who are into skateboarding; a couple of them have scooters too,” he said. “There’s not a lot of parks around campus, so having something relatively close … it’ll brighten up the area, that’s for sure.”

Todd Ogden, president and CEO of the Downtown Lincoln Association, said the park will be a “catalyst” for Lincoln’s economy.

“It means having things grow around it and being a spark plug for our community,” he said. “I’m just excited that when this is done, when people say, ‘park downtown,’ they’re not going to be thinking about cars. They’re going to be thinking about this place.”