Park Interpretation and Signage Survey #2: 
The second survey has be concluded. Thank you so much for your time and feedback! We will update this page as this project moves forward.
August 14, 2023 Update
The initial Engage Missoula survey concluded in March and asked participants to share stories they would like to see in Caras, East Caras, and Bess Reed Parks. The results of that survey and of the public open house have been summarized and crafted into a series of draft recommendations. These draft recommendations were created for and have been presented to boards such as the Historic Preservation Commission, the Downtown Missoula Partnership Heritage Committee, Destination Missoula, and the Missoula Downtown Foundation.
The final plan will be posted to the Missoula Parks & Recreation website and the Downtown Missoula Partnership website. The plan will include the following tools for content developers who will create the eventual signage:
- A list of potential community partners
- Sign Recommendations for each of the three park spaces: Caras, East Caras, and Bess Reed
- Recommendations for content that should not be featured in Caras, and potential locations for those stories to be told in future projects
- Methodology for ensuring signs adhere to adopted Missoula guidelines such as the Wayfinding Plan
- Priority ranking of sign projects for the park, emphasizing the importance of minimizing signage while maximizing appropriate, relevant content
- Brainstorming for potential complementary interpretation outside of physical signage, including existing resources such as the Unseen Missoula tours and potential growth avenues such as digital interpretation or pop-up interpretive events
- Principles of good sign development, including:
- ADA accessibility and universal design guidelines, promoting signs that are accessible for all community members
- Prioritizing stories that include multiple viewpoints and experiences, including those of Montana’s Indigenous people, especially the Séliš and Ql̓ispé people
- Recognizing and promoting a more inclusive history that embraces stories of Missoula’s historically marginalized communities (including LGBTQI+ stories and experiences, Black stories and experiences, and Chinese stories and experiences)
- Recommendations related to word count and selection of images
- Styling guidelines to create a standard visual language for the park units’ interpretive signs
The second survey has concluded. Thank you!
Parks exist at the heart of Missoula.
Nestled in a valley shaped by glacial ice dams and floods, it is a place rich in natural history and human history. The Séliš and Ql̓ispé have considered the valley their home since time immemorial, gathering bitterroot and camas on the river banks and fishing long before Caras Park and Bess Reed park received their names. Missoula’s industries also grew along the river, from sawmills and railroads to farmer’s markets and guided river trips. The stories told in Missoula’s parks should be the stories of the varied people, enterprises, and people who have shaped these spaces into centers of the community.
Park Interpretation and Signage in North Riverside Parks - Project Background
Missoula Parks and Recreation, the Downtown Missoula Partnership, and Destination Missoula are working to develop a Media Implementation Plan. This plan includes three unique and adjacent parks: Caras Park, East Caras Park, and Bess Reed Park. The three parks are connected by Ron’s River Trail.
These parks are public spaces, and the vision for their use and development has been an ongoing collaboration with community members. The North Riverside Parks and Trails Plan is the product of public outreach, stakeholder meetings, survey, and design work. The goal of the plan has been to create multi-use spaces to support year-round activities, develop better trail connections and gateways, update materials and landscaping, and ensure enhancements to the riverfront respect natural processes while providing better access for everyone.
Development of the North Riverside Parks is ongoing. In 2021, the first phase of development began in Caras Park with a significant collaborative effort between the Missoula Downtown Association, Missoula City Parks and Recreation and Public Works and Mobility Departments. The changes resulted in renewed amphitheater seating, widening the trail and adding lighting, improved accessibility, and installation of a stormwater filtration system to protect the river.
Additional changes are coming soon. Many elements of the parks will remain the same during development; the Returnings (fish) and Brennan’s Wave art features are staying. Other elements, pending your input, may change and expand. This plan seeks to prioritize new interpretation opportunities in the three parks.
This plan, when complete, will provide guidelines for developing interpretation in the three park units and along the river trail. It will include tools to help develop signage such as graphic guidelines and accessibility recommendations. The plan will also identify the types of signage that will be part of Caras Park: everything from wayfinding to help visitors find parking to heritage signs exploring Missoula’s past.
This effort relies and builds upon other recently conducted planning efforts. Missoula updated and adopted the Downtown Master Plan in 2019. In 2020, Missoula adopted the Missoula Downtown Heritage Interpretive Plan to guide and shape the stories we share in our public spaces. View a large image of the features found in Caras Park, East Caras Park, and Bess Reed Park.
Map of features found in Caras Park, East Caras Park, and Bess Reed Park
