Thomas Polk Park

On the rare occasion I get to meet Husband uptown for lunch, we usually try to make a point to stop by, even for only a few minutes, to take in this little breath of fresh air in the big city. On a warm summer day — like today — it is a cooling presence that adds a most welcome calming touch to whatever else the day holds in store for you.
Go on. Take off your socks, roll up your pant legs, and get in some splish-​splash before you have to head back to the office.

Totally agree with Stephen and Chad. Whenever there is green space in a city area, I think it’s great. It’s not your traditional park to take kids, but at least there are trees and plants to break up the straight lines of concrete and glass that the buildings downtown are composed of.
You can’t find any playground space here, but just a nice water fall fountain feature with some inspirational/​historical quotes. There are a few tables where I’ve seen people playing chess or enjoying their lunches outside and the city does a decent job lighting up the trees and decorating the flower beds for the Xmas holiday.

This is one of Uptown’s unexpected chotchkies, and one of my favorites. It’s a tiny little stone courtyard, depressed slightly below street level with buildings on two sides and traffic on the others but in the back corner is a surprisingly captivating waterfall. Uptown has a lot of water features, but this is the only one that draws wedding photographs. A few trees provide the only shelter from the Trade and Tryon intersection, but they get bigger every year and on a quiet night (+snow +Christmas lights) it can be the city’s most magical spot.

Though small and often unnoticed, Thomas Polk Park has to be one of my favorites in the city. Especially at night when the flowing water is illuminated — makes for an incredible sight that is tough to beat. Even better is during the winter holiday season when the trees are trimmed with lights, as it adds something even better to the atmosphere.
My only complaint is that it would be nice if there were a way to escape what is happening around the park. You are, after all, at one of the busiest corners in the QC, so the traffic is a bit nuts. The good news is that at night it isn’t bad, and if you are in the midst of the water, you can get away from it all somewhat.
Still, if there was some sort of separation (like at The Green), it would be that much nicer. Throw in some benches where you could relax, that would be awesome. For those of you with young ‘uns, you may want to keep a close eye on them, because the park lacks any sort of protection around the water, and they could easily fall in if they are the sort who do that sort of thing!