LeBauer & Center City Parks are open daily, 7am - 10pm
The Children's Garden is open daily, 8am - 9pm
history
How two sister-Parks Came to Be
From parking lots to lush urban greenspace, the story of Greensboro’s downtown parks is as woven into the city’s history as the railways that earned it the nickname Gate City and the denim industry that made it Jeansboro. Today, LeBauer Park and Center City Park serve as the heart of downtown, bringing people together through history, art, and community connection.
LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
Before Greensboro was founded, this land was a meeting and exchange site for Indigenous peoples. By the 1600s, the Saura and Keyauwee tribes called this region home. Over time, many other Indigenous nations, including the Catawba, Eno, and Sissipahaw, lived in what is now North Carolina. Today, the state recognizes eight tribes, and Greensboro is home to the Guilford Native American Association, the state’s oldest urban American Indian association.
Early History: A City Takes Shape
Early 19th Century
Greensboro was officially established in 1807, with 42 acres of land purchased to serve as the new county seat. The original town plan featured a small grid of streets, with the future site of Center City Park positioned in the northeast corner.
Mid to Late 19th Century
Greensboro remained a small village until the 1840s when the arrival of the railroad transformed it into a major transportation hub. Known as the Gate City, it became the center of the Southern textile industry, with mills producing denim, flannel, and overalls—an industry that continues today with companies like Wrangler.
Both LeBauer Park and Center City Park reflect this history. The pergolas in Center City Park are inspired by weaving looms, paying tribute to Greensboro’s textile heritage, while LeBauer Park’s aerial sculpture, Where We Met by Janet Echelman, maps the railways that once connected local textile mills.
The 20th Century: Growth, Change & SOCIAL MOVEMENT
As Greensboro expanded, industry boomed. The city became home to companies like Vicks Chemical Co. and Carolina Steel, and even during the Great Depression, new families continued moving in. A commitment to green spaces emerged as a hallmark of Greensboro’s planning, laying the foundation for the parks we know today.
The mid-20th century also saw Greensboro play a pivotal role in the Civil Rights Movement. In 1960, the Greensboro Four staged their historic sit-in at the Woolworth’s lunch counter, sparking a national movement. The city remained a center of activism, with North Carolina’s largest protests for racial justice taking place here in 1963.
Sixty years later, the largest event in LeBauer Park’s history, the BlackOut NC demonstration, drew over 9,000 people demanding racial justice in June 2020. Once again, the park served as a place for the community to gather and call for change.
In 2022, Women of the Shoah, a powerful Holocaust memorial, was installed in LeBauer Park, honoring Jewish women’s resilience and resistance in the face of genocide. This striking memorial serves as a reminder of the ongoing struggle for justice and human dignity across all communities.
As throughout Greensboro’s history, when the community needed to come together, they found a place to stand in the park.
A Downtown Transformed: The Vision for Urban Greenspace
By the late 1990s, Greensboro’s downtown revitalization efforts were in full swing, and city leaders recognized the need for a central greenspace to serve as a gathering place for the community.
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2002: Land was acquired for what would become Center City Park.
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2003: The community was invited to shape the park’s vision through placemaking workshops. A temporary “Interim Park” was opened to allow people to experience the space and imagine its potential.
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2004: The Center City Park Committee launched a nationwide search for top landscape designers. Halvorson Design Partnership, Inc. of Boston was selected to bring the vision to life. Greensboro’s J. Hyatt Hammond Associates provided on-site supervision, and Rentenbach Constructors, Inc. served as the general contractor. Don Euser Waterarchitecture, Inc. of Ontario was commissioned to design the park’s iconic fountain.
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2006: Center City Park officially opened on December 1. The park was managed by Action Greensboro, in partnership with the city, laying the foundation for a long-term public-private partnership model.
A decade later, a $10 million bequest from Carolyn LeBauer made it possible to create LeBauer Park, an innovative, activity-focused space just across the street from Center City Park.
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2014: Construction began, with The Office of James Burnett leading the landscape design and Biederman Redevelopment Ventures shaping programming and management strategies.
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2016: LeBauer Park opened, featuring a dog park, interactive fountain, performance pavilion, café spaces, and vibrant public art. Its centerpiece, Janet Echelman’s aerial sculpture Where We Met, celebrates Greensboro’s textile and railway history.
With the opening of LeBauer Park, a new nonprofit, Greensboro Downtown Parks, Inc. (GDPI), was formed to oversee both parks, ensuring they remain vibrant, welcoming, and community-driven. Today, GDPI continues to build on the vision that transformed these once-underutilized spaces into the heart of downtown Greensboro.
TodaY: A THRIVING COMMUNITY HUB
LeBauer and Center City Parks welcome over 375,000 visitors each year, hosting 350+ free events and programs in partnership with 100+ local organizations. The Parks have become an essential part of downtown Greensboro—offering a space where people can connect, celebrate, and enjoy the vibrant spirit of the city.
From their deep historical roots to their role as modern-day gathering places, LeBauer and Center City Parks continue to shape Greensboro’s story—bringing people together in the heart of downtown.