John Paul II Park (Santiago)

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John Paul II Park (Spanish: Parque Juan Pablo II), previously known as the East Araucano Park (Spanish: Parque Araucano Oriente), is an urban park located in the affluent commune of Las Condes in Santiago, Chile, between Nuestra Señora del Rosario, Manquehue, Presidente Riesco, and Cerro Colorado streets. The park sits opposite Araucano Park through Manquehue Avenue and is connected to it by a footbridge.

A 7-metre-tall (23 ft) statue of Pope John Paul II, covered in plants, was erected in the park in his honour.

History

The park is located on the former site of the San Luis Fund, which was used to develop the Barrio Modelo San Luis.[1][2] A design competition was held in 2005 to choose a design for the park, and the winning proposal was submitted by Polish-Chilean architect Cristina Felsenhardt, and Chilean architects Hans Muhr and Juana Zunino,[3] with 70,000 square metres (750,000 sq ft) of land allocated for the park's construction.[3]

The park was inaugurated on 6 June 2009,[4] after being renamed to its current name.[5] The opening ceremony was led by Francisco de la Maza, the Mayor of Las Condes, and Francisco Javier Errázuriz Ossa, the archbishop of Santiago.[5] During the ceremony, Maza announced that a statue would be built to honour John Paul II and launched a design competition to select its design.[4] The winning design, a 7-metre-tall (23 ft) statue on a concrete base, featured a "green" design, incorporating a plant-covered mesh that enveloped the entire structure.[6][7]

In 2013, the Entre Parques Footbridge was inaugurated, connecting the park with the Araucano Park.[8] The bridge's design was chosen through a design competition, which was won by architects Juan Francisco Garcés, Pablo Levine, and Juan Ignacio Muñoz.[9][10]

References

  1. 1."La U quiso hacer su estadio en el Parque Araucano". QuePasa (in Spanish). 17 October 2010. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 24 June 2026.
  2. 2.Uribe, Begoña (11 February 2015). "Clásicos de Arquitectura: Villa San Luis / CORMU". ArchDaily México (in Mexican Spanish). Archived from the original on 15 January 2025. Retrieved 24 June 2026.
  3. 3.[3.2]Felsenhardt, Cristina; Muhr, Hans; Zunino, Juana (2007). "Parque Juan Pablo II: Las Condes, Chile". ARQ (Santiago) (67): 70–73. doi:10.4067/S0717-69962007000300011. ISSN 0717-6996.
  4. 4.[4.2]"Cardenal Errázuriz inauguró nuevo Parque Juan Pablo II en Las Condes". Conferencia Episcopal de Chile (in Spanish). 10 June 2009. Archived from the original on 24 January 2025. Retrieved 24 June 2026.
  5. 5.[5.2]"Las Condes suma un nuevo parque". La Tercera (in Spanish). 8 June 2009. Retrieved 24 June 2026.
  6. 6."Parque de Las Condes tendrá escultura de Juan Pablo II y edificio de servicios". La Tercera (in Spanish). 23 April 2010. Retrieved 24 June 2026.
  7. 7."Las Condes erguirá estatua de 7 metros del Papa Juan Pablo II". Emol (in Spanish). 23 April 2010. Archived from the original on 8 July 2026. Retrieved 24 June 2026.
  8. 8."Pasarela "Entre Parques" se inauguró formalmente – Ernesto Silva". Ernesto Silva (in European Spanish). 1 April 2013. Archived from the original on 16 September 2024. Retrieved 24 June 2026.
  9. 9.K, Agustín Infante (7 May 2010). "Ganador Concurso Pasarela para unión de Parques Araucano y Juan Pablo II". ArchDaily en Español (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 15 December 2025. Retrieved 24 June 2026.
  10. 10.""Queríamos que el puente fuera un hito en la ciudad"". Diario Financiero (in Spanish). 30 March 2012. Archived from the original on 13 December 2024. Retrieved 24 June 2026.