Until 2013 the Main Street Dam kept this stretch of the Scioto River wide and stagnant; today Genoa Park, a 2.07-acre urban park on the west bank between Broad and Rich Streets, part of the Scioto Mile, curves along it. Named for Genoa, the birthplace of Christopher Columbus and one of Columbus' sister cities, the park first opened in 1999. Its curve follows the river where, until recent years, a different scene prevailed: the Main Street Dam, a low head dam built in 1918, once doubled the river's width to 600 feet (180 m), leaving the water stagnant and muddy.
From 2011 to 2015 the park was expanded as the riverfront was reimagined; the dam was removed in 2013 and sediment cleared, narrowing the river to 300 feet (91 m) and revealing 33 acres (13 ha) of shoreline that had been underwater. The Oval you stand near was, until the dam removal in 2013, actually beneath the water. Today the park features an amphitheater and fountains and hosts public artworks and monuments such as Celebration of Life, the Columbus Police Memorial, and several works from Scioto Lounge.
Notice the amphitheater, fountains, and public art like Celebration of Life scattered across this reclaimed shoreline.