The Cleveland Foundation has committed $8 million toward a $30 million effort to dramatically overhaul downtown Cleveland’s iconic, yet dreary, central artery, Public Square.

The grant, which was announced at an event on the square Tuesday morning, July 15, is the first public financial commitment toward the fledgling project. The grant dollars will be funneled to LAND studio, a local nonprofit that specializes in public space design, to support the Group Plan Commission’s efforts to remake the square — an area Cleveland Foundation CEO Ronn Richard described as the “ultimate symbol of a ‘place for people.’” “We can think of no better way to celebrate our next century of commitment to our community than by helping to transform the heart of our city into a gathering place in which we can all take pride,” Richard said in a news release provided to Crain’s before the 10 a.m. announcement on the square. Planning officials expect the foundation’s grant to spur additional giving required to complete the ambitious transformation by May 2016. In the release, Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson said the foundation’s grant “goes a long way toward making that transformation a reality.” Last month, several people in the business community told Crain’s that several commitments from the corporate and philanthropic communities already are in the pipeline. In recognition of the foundation’s grant, the south plaza of the redesigned space will be named “Cleveland Foundation Centennial Plaza.” The foundation characterized the gift as one of its “centennial legacy grants” in celebration of its 100th anniversary. The first was a $10 million commitment in September 2012 to support Case Western Reserve University’s new medical education and research building. The second was $10 million worth of grants to support a local Encore program — an effort designed to mobilize those 50 years of age and older for the betterment of their communities. “No public space is more central to Cleveland and to Clevelanders than Public Square,” said Group Plan Commission chair Anthony J. Coyne in a news release. “With this centennial gift, the Cleveland Foundation has led the way for others in the community and made a historical commitment to transform the heart of our city for generations to come. This catalytic gift puts us in a great position to deliver the world-class public space all Clevelanders deserve.” The commission has hired James Corner Field Operations of New York to redesign Public Square. “More and more parks and great public spaces are becoming the calling cards of cities,” Richard Kennedy, a principal with James Corner Field Operations, told Crain's last month. “They've become the primary spaces people want to visit, people want to bring their families on the weekend, the primary place people go to experience the city because they are so full of activity and life.” The $30 million effort to overhaul the square is part of a broader $60 million effort by civic planners to entice people to spend more time downtown. A central village green would run from the square north along the spaces of the city's central Mall to a bridge that would carry visitors to the museums along the lakefront. Cleveland and Cuyahoga County have pledged $10 million each for the pedestrian bridge, and Gov. John Kasich has offered $5 million from the state.