Since 2017, GAI Consultants’ Community Solutions Group has been working with the City of Hurricane, West Virginia, on the development of Hurricane Bridge Park—a new, nearly 60-acre recreational property in the heart of the City. GAI and CSG have led the master planning, landscape architecture, archaeological, permitting, and site/civil efforts for the project. During the design process, the GAI/CSG team addressed several challenges, including additional property acquisitions that enabled the design to grow, but altered permitting requirements. The project team successfully secured the necessary permits for the project to proceed, and in 2019, the City self-performed the first phase of the park’s construction—i.e., the segment east of Hurricane Creek. In 2022, a local contractor, Hayslett Construction, was selected to begin the construction of second phase, which includes the segment west of Hurricane Creek.

The completed Hurricane Bridge Park will include a state-of-the-art baseball complex with four fields for players of varying ages, as well as a football field, playgrounds, numerous trails, pickleball courts, and a championship-quality disc golf course. Furthermore, the park will provide a pedestrian link to Hurricane’s Main Street, enabling parkgoers to safely walk and enjoy the numerous shops and restaurants along the growing streetscape. The majority of construction will be completed in late fall 2023, and the park will officially open in spring 2024.