The New York office of Stantec (formerly Vollmer Associates) has been selected to develop a master plan and provide design services for improvements and upgrades to historic Fort Washington Park in Manhattan. This project is part of New York City Mayor Bloomberg's PlaNYC initiative which will give New Yorkers new and reconstructed open space and outstanding recreational opportunities. The 160-acre Fort Washington Park, which runs along the west bank of the Hudson River, is the site of a major Revolutionary War battle, fought at the highest point in Manhattan, now known as Washington Heights. The principal objectives of the project are to upgrade and supplement existing recreational facilities, enhance scenic and landscape quality, improve pedestrian connections, and possibly extend the West Side greenway. The initial phase involves developing a master plan and preparing a final scope of work for the design of comprehensive improvements. The master plan will include an analysis of existing patterns of use, demographic trends, how adjacent and proposed development will affect usage, circulation patterns, constraints and opportunities, security and safety concerns, areas of archaeological interest, types and conditions of vegetation, erosion and drainage issues, and condition of facilities. One of the chief priorities is the improvement of pedestrian connections to the surrounding community and along the shoreline to Dyckman St. at the northern end of the project site. The master plan is scheduled to be completed by December. Construction work on the project is expected to start by spring of 2009.