For Meaghan Foy, the new Village Park in Point Park University’s urban environment makes her school feel more at home – a place to hang out with friends.After nearly three years of planning and almost a year of construction, students could finally visit the Village Park when it opened to the public during the official ceremony Wednesday, Sept. 14.”[The Park is] nice. It makes the school feel more like a campus,” said Foy, a junior musical theater major, after the ceremony. University President Paul Hennigan used history as his guide at the dedication ceremony to voice people’s reaction at the conversion.”People who knew this site before we did this remember it as a parking lot. Those who have been around for a while remember it as a gas station. When you look at this and see how the architecture design just pulls in everything – it’s been awe,” Hennigan said at the park Wednesday morning.The Park, located at the corner of Wood Street and Boulevard of the Allies, was constructed by Tasso Katselas Associates, Inc., Klavon Design Associates, Massaro Corp. and BDA Engineering, Inc. The $6.6 million project is part of a $244 million master plan to transform the university and was mostly funded by a state redevelopment assistance capital grant.For some students, creating a green, urban park designed for students, faculty, staff and the Downtown neighborhood was a good idea. But others, like Christina Provident, who live close to Downtown and take the bus because of the parking crisis, feel differently.”I think [the Park] is very pretty and it’s a nice thought,” said Provident, a junior public relations major and commuter, outside Lawrence Hall on Friday. “But I think they should have spent the $6 million on a parking lot instead because that would be the perfect place for student parking.”The park’s official ceremonial opening was marked by fireworks, drum rolls, dancers running with flowing blue ribbons and the initiation of the fountain. Hennigan; State Rep. Paul Costa, D-Allegheny County, Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato; Program Director of Heinz Endowments Janet Sarbaugh; Building Manager of Pittsburgh Building and Construction Trades Council Richard Stanizzo and Mayor Luke Ravenstahl attended the ceremony, shared their insights and thanked sponsors.The day after the opening, six dura heat river birches were planted.Although the urban park is no bigger than the infield at PNC Park, Mayor Ravenstahl voiced his vision that the park will create a more vibrant atmosphere in the heart of growing Downtown. Ravenstahl said Point Park is on “the brink of the Renaissance of Pittsburgh” in his speech at the official opening ceremony.Also during the ceremony, Onorato said Point Park is probably one of the strongest assets for revitalizing Downtown because the city is the “core” of the region. He also noted that the Park “is a great investment of tax dollars.”Hennigan proudly announced the name of the restaurant to open in March 2012, bordering the south edge of the park. He noted that the owners already run Cioppino Restaurant & Cigar Bar and Osteria 2350 in the Strip District.The Osteria “101” menu is developed by Pittsburgh-native Executive Chef Greg Alauzen and will follow the Italian tradition of seasonally prepared dishes with a focus on local ingredients. The restaurant will have a liquor license and seat 80 guests inside, as well as offer outdoor al fresco seating. A final decision has not been made on whether or not students will be able to use their flex dollars at the restaurant.Foy and others were drawn to the park by shaved ice, candy, popcorn and curiosity on Wednesday night for the official student opening. Impressed by the fountain, Foy intends to use the park and eat at Osteria “101” in the future.The university plans on continuing its transformation, which lays out the course of space allocation for 10 years, according to University Architect Elmer Burger.The streetscape project will be finished by next spring and construction on the new Student and Convocation Center is scheduled to start by the end of 2012.Point Park received a grant from the Heinz Endowments for the $32 million project that includes tearing down the fire station on the Boulevard of the Allies and constructing the new Center behind it in the shuttle parking lot, which will connect the Student and Convocation Center with the Boulevard Apartments. The complex will include a 1,000-seat basketball court, bookstore, food venues, locker rooms, an expanded fitness center and a green roof for growing produce to sell at the convenience market in the building.