What is a pocket park? Here's the answer, plus all the plans for the one coming to Gardner

Visitors to downtown Gardner will notice that the site of the former Maki Block Building has been fenced off.

That is because construction will soon begin on a $376,625 project to transform the property into a ‘pocket park,’ a small-scale space designed to provide a safe and inviting environment in urban settings.

The finished project will see the site terraced into three tiers. The lower level will be used for outdoor seating, the middle tier will include permanent cornhole boards, while the top terrace will have a stage with electrical capacity to be used for musical performances.

“The goal of this project, like with Orpheum Park, is to make it so that we have a more walkable downtown with places for people to stop and visit, but also for those in the new apartments that are opening to have places to feel like they have a front/back yard where they can feel at home in the downtown,” said Mayor Michael Nicholson.

The contract for the project was awarded to BusyBee Nursery in Holden.

The City Council appropriated $180,000 from Free Cash for the project, with the remainder of the funding coming from a portion of the city’s American Rescue Plan Act funds.

Construction on the project is expected to be completed by September.

This article originally appeared on Gardner News: What is a pocket park? Here's the answer, plus all the plans for the one coming to Gardner