Giving Pease a chance

The Moody Foundation has given a $9.7 million grant to the Pease Park Conservancy, which will fund the first phase of the park’s new master plan. The plan, which was approved by City Council in 2014, calls for new trails and better accessibility, more trees, and picnic shelters and other amenities throughout the 84-acre tract located along North Lamar Boulevard between 24th Street and Enfield Road. The first phase of work will be focused on the Kingsbury Commons section on the park’s south end and includes entrance improvements, adding children’s playscapes and water features, converting Tudor Cottage into a community gathering space and creating the Kingsbury Pavilion to accommodate additional community activities and gatherings. The conservancy will select a design firm for the first phase later this year, and it is launching a capital campaign to fund the rest of the master plan’s improvements in the coming years. In February, the Moody Foundation granted $15 million to fund the renovation of Waterloo Park and construct a 5,000-capacity amphitheater.