This article is about the public park in New York City. For other uses, see Central Park (disambiguation).Central Park is a public
park at the center of
Manhattan in
New York City. The park initially opened in 1857, on 778 acre of city-owned land (it is 843 acres today). In 1858,
Frederick Law Olmsted and
Calvert Vaux won a
design competition to improve and expand the park with a plan they entitled the
Greensward Plan. Construction began the same year, continued during the
American Civil War, and was completed in 1873. Central Park is the most visited
urban park in the United States.
Designated a
National Historic Landmark in 1962, the park is currently managed by the
Central Park Conservancy under contract with the city government. The Conservancy is a non-profit organization that contributes 83.5% of Central Park's $37.5 million annual budget, and employs 80.7% of the park's maintenance staff.