City officials and designers unveiled what’s come to be known as the final "alternative design" for the 7-acre park. The plan evolved after the city determined it would cost about $10 million to relocate a set of railroad tracks that bisect the site roughly bordered by Brearly, Wilson and Baldwin streets and second set of railroad tracks to the northwest.

Mark Olinger, the city’s planning and development director, said if the plan gets final approval from the City Council late this summer, construction could begin a year from now. The city has about $4 million in federal earmarks and local funds that can be used for land acquisition and other work, he said.

A task force has been set up to determine how the park would be operated and maintained, with a private-public partnership similar to the one that runs Olbrich Botanical Gardens one possible model, he said.

Plans show a main entrance to the park at South Few and East Wilson streets that would take park-goers over a set of railroad tracks. A 20,000-square-foot skate park — which would be the first one in Madison — and 2-acre "great lawn" book-ended by two performance spaces lie northwest of the tracks, while space for a possible future commuter rail station and a playground are on the other side.

Farther to the southwest are a second lawn and performance area covering about an acre and, south of an existing bike path, about a quarter acre of land for community gardens.

Ken Saiki, one of the designers from the three firms that worked on the plan, said the park is designed as a series of community spaces connected by a bike path that runs along Wilson Street.

Park Board Chairman Bill Barker quipped that the final product was a "nice glass of lemonade" and the 50 or so people who saw the presentation at the Wil-Mar Neighborhood Center generally agreed, although there was some concern about opting for wide lawns rather than less-manicured, more natural areas.

Key to the success of the park will be the acquisition of two parcels not owned by the Center for Resilient Cities, which proposed the park more than a decade ago. Robert Sands, who owns the land at East Wilson and South Baldwin streets has so far not been willing to sell, Barker said. Madison Gas & Electric, which owns the spot where the gardens would be, also has not indicated if it will sell its land.

The city also would need approval from the state Office of the Commissioner of Railroads to put in the at-grade crossing into the park at Few Street.

Barker urged neighbors who want to see the plan become a reality to get involved as the plan goes through the city approval process.

"The flame of this park has been kept alive by this neighborhood," he said. "If there’s any group in this town that can make it happen, it’s you all."

 The railroad tracks remain, but the latest plan for the long-awaited central park on Madison’s east Isthmus also features a skate park, urban garden plots, multiple areas for outdoor events and futuristic wind turbines, residents of the Marquette neighborhood learned Tuesday night.