Located next to Boston's traditional Chinatown Gate, the park is approximately 3/4 of an acre in size. It is built over an abandoned off-ramp from the Central Artery Dewey Square tunnel. The design interprets traditional Chinese town and garden design elements, creating a space of its time with solid references to the past.  Being the most significant open space within Chinatown, flexible-use open space for daily recreation and planned events and more intimate spaces for passive respite from the city was the emphasis of the design. Through a highly collaborative community process, the park's design is focused on the diverse needs of its adjacent communities – Chinatown, the Leather District, and the Financial District.

Often found in Asian gardens, the park includes placed boulders and a waterfall stream constructed from old Fort Point Channel seawall stone. The water feature is central to the park's composition and provides an important found moment along the new serpentine walk. It creates a pause and encourages individuals and families to congregate for children's play.

The new Essex Street Gateway marks the southern threshold to the new space - a new way-finding element designed to be visible on the Greenway from Dewey Square. The adjacent sail sculpture evokes Boston's China Trade of the late 17th and early 18th century that was instrumental in the development of Chinatown.  From Dewey Square, the gate is seen as traditional gate posts and lintel with the illuminated sail feature in the foreground. As one approaches the park, the Sail becomes a separate element, and the flared lintel is revealed as a daring cantilever. As seen from under the large gate, the base stands firmly in a symbolic rice field, while the lintel disappears in a grove of tall bamboo. At night the composition changes again as the Sail becomes a beacon of soft light, while the angular, red gateway glows warmly against the green bamboo.