Woldenberg Riverfront Park Celebrates 30th Anniversary

This month, Audubon Commission and Audubon Nature Institute celebrate the opening of Woldenberg Park, which was developed with a generous gift from the Dorothy and Malcolm Woldenberg Foundation. The Park gave the city its first direct access to the downtown Mississippi riverfront and provided a setting for Audubon Aquarium of the Americas and Entergy Giant Screen Theater.

The Park spans 17 acres of green space, contains numerous works of art, and has become home to several iconic New Orleans events, such as French Quarter Festival, Zulu Lundi Gras, and New Orleans Fireworks Celebrations like Go 4^th on the River and New Year’s Eve on the Riverfront.

“The Mississippi River defines New Orleans. Woldenberg Riverfront Park was designed as a place for families in New Orleans to experience the wonder of this precious resource. We are proud to continue the legacy of inspiring a deeper and enduring appreciation of nature,” says President and CEO of Audubon Nature Institute Ron Forman.

Woldenberg Riverfront Park not only serves as the backdrop for Audubon Aquarium of the Americas, which will be celebrating its 30-year anniversary in 2020, it also served as an important staging area for first responders after Hurricane Katrina.

Guests are encouraged to take a moment to view the several art installations throughout the Park: “Ocean Song,” a sculpture by Louisiana artist John Scott, stands on the edge of the central lawn while the kinetic New Orleans Holocaust Memorial Sculpture by Israeli artist Yaacov Agam is centrally located. Along the river, the “Monument to the Immigrant,” erected in 1995, depicts an immigrant family on one side and a stylized figure shaped liked the front of a ship on the other, to remind people that New Orleans is historically a port city and a city of immigrants.

Children and adults alike can beat the heat in the “Fountain of Dancing Water,” a 90-foot linear fountain located on the Aquarium plaza. The fountain is accompanied by 30 varying lights for evening events.

Throughout the rich history of the Park, it has served as a beautiful green space for New Orleans residents and visitors, celebrations and festival space, and a beautiful entry way into the Aquarium. Here is to the next 30 years!