The 1.9-acre park was ded­i­cated in 1962, part of the mas­sive urban rede­vel­op­ment of the city’s down­town area that accom­pa­nied the con­struc­tion of the Gate­way Arch and Busch Sta­dium II. It is a con­nec­tor of sorts between the Gate­way Arch on the Mis­sis­sippi river­front and the Gate­way Mall, a series of sev­eral parks along Market Street in the Down­town and Down­town West Neigh­bor­hoods.

The plaza is named for Harry J. Kiener, born in St. Louis on Feb­ru­ary 27, 1881, a life­long ama­teur sports­man who was a member of the U.S. track team that com­peted in the 1904 Olympics held in St. Louis during the World’s Fair. Kiener was also a steel exec­u­tive. Upon his death at age 80 in 1960, he bequeathed funds for a foun­tain with an ath­letic figure — ​“The Runner” sculp­ture, one of the park’s high­lights along with the May Amphithe­ater.

Kiener Plaza reopened this past May after more than a year of con­struc­tion and $23 mil­lion spent on remod­el­ing. The revamp includes more open space, a grassy con­cert area west of the Old Cour­t­house, a large play­ground with splash pad and mul­ti­ple foun­tains. More than 140 trees were planted in the plaza as part of the project in addi­tion to lush new gar­dens.

Gone is the sunken amphithe­ater on the park’s west end, which held about 500 people. The new con­cert lawn space across from the Old Cour­t­house can accom­mo­date about 2,000 people for events.

The foun­tain fea­tur­ing ​“The Runner” sculp­ture has been made smaller to bring vis­i­tors closer to the park’s center rather than the edges. On the north side is a gravel-paved shady picnic and rest area rem­i­nis­cent of French garden path­ways, and much of the park now fea­tures marble, gran­ite and con­crete pavers.

Selux Olivio Sis­tema 2 lumi­nar­ies were used through­out the park to illu­mi­nate this well-known down­town gath­er­ing spot. Its pre­ci­sion light is a per­fect fit for the many pedes­trian walk­ways and sit­ting areas with­out inter­fer­ing with the beau­ti­ful views of the Gate­way Arch.

client CityArchRiver

landscape architect Nate Trevethan - Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates (MVVA), Brooklyn, NY

lighting designer Randy Burkett - Randy Burkett Lighting Design, St. Louis, MO

electrical installation Power UP

photographer Tom Paule