Landscape Information
Formerly known as Joseph H. Rash Memorial Park, this six-acre public park opened in 1976, originally designed as a recreational space by the architectural firm RTKL Associates. Beginning in 1978, when steady use of the athletic fields ceased, the park began to be used primarily as a staging area for large events, including state fairs and cultural festivals. The Inner Harbor Ice Rink was installed on the western end of the park in 1989 but was removed in 2003. In 2013 the City of Baltimore announced a master plan for the rejuvenation of the Inner Harbor, in which a key element was the redesign of Rash Park. In 2015 the landscape architecture firm Mahan Rykiel Associates was chosen to carry out the work, which is yet to be completed.
This flat, rectangular space is bordered by a parking lot on the east and by the Maryland Science Center on the west. A monument dedicated in 1992 honoring those lost in the sinking of the vessel Baltimore’s Pride in 1986 is situated at the eastern end of the park. Comprising a wooden mast centered between two granite plaques, the monument and its octagonal plinth are encircled by an asphalt ring, creating four quadrants of grass lawn. Two trees flanks each of the four paved paths that interrupt the asphalt ring. Dominating the southwestern portion of the park are seven volleyball courts, while a concrete drive surrounds the field, allowing vehicular access and additional parking. Approximately ten tiers of continuous concrete seating flank the space on the southern border, wrapping midway around the eastern side as well. Two tiers of concrete seating, interspersed with steps and lamp posts, form the site’s northern border, separating the field from the signature red paving that links the many landscapes within the Inner Harbor. To the northwest of the field is the Harry D. Kaufman Pavilion, which features more tiered seating, an octagonal sand pit, and a circular structure that formerly housed the Inner Harbor Carousel for more than 30 years.
