For years, Johnston Square has been isolated from Baltimore’s Mid-Town by a four-block expanse of vacant land: a nuisance for neighbors and an eyesore for the city. But when Johnston Square residents organized to plan a different future for their neighborhood, they reimagined this eyesore as an opportunity. In the 2020 Johnston Square Vision Plan, they envisioned Greenmount Park: a four-acre centerpiece of the neighborhood’s rebirth with a playground, promenades, greenery, and a new playing field to serve residents and Saint Frances Academy’s renowned football team.
Today, that long-held community vision is one step closer to reality.
We broke ground on Greenmount Park last month, and the site is already undergoing a huge transformation. By next Spring, Greenmount Park will be a hub of community activity, providing recreation and community-building opportunities to the Johnston Square community while reconnecting the neighborhood to the rest of Baltimore.
Greenmount Park will include the following amenities:
- A state-of-the-art playground with play equipment for children of all ages
- A large lawn space with ample shade trees
- A plaza for community activities
- A tree-lined promenade with pedestrian lighting and seating areas
- A wide variety of new trees, plants, and shrubs
- A new full-sized athletic field for shared use by Saint Frances Academy’s athletic teams and the Johnston Square community
Greenmount Park was designed by Floura Teeter Landscape Architects with planning and funding support from Parks & People Foundation. Construction of the community park is being led by Clipper Construction, and engineering has been led by CMR Engineering.
The park space received funding from HUD, the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development, the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, the France-Merrick Foundation, and the Middendorf Foundation. Saint Frances Academy is the lead partner in the completion of the athletic field. The City of Baltimore has been a consistent partner in preparing the site for redevelopment.
