in which they fired cannons and pretended to storm the blockhouse walls. Though Parsons and Kellogg presented their proposed changes in August 1887, which they believed were feasible with the available $250,000 appropriation, local property owners asked that the original plan be used instead. Later that month, the board voted to let Olmsted and Vaux work on the plan. The plan was modified to accommodate changed conditions, like the construction of an elevated railway station at 116th Street and Eighth Avenue. Among other changes, the modified design included a broad path and a thin path traversing the lower portion of the park. Initially, Olmsted and Vaux had proposed a southeastern entrance plaza, a lagoon, and an exhibition hall; the modified design eliminated these, while adding a lawn and a "Restawhile" recreation structure. Olmsted and Vaux had differing visions for Morningside Park: Olmsted believed the area should be kept naturalistic, and advocated the removal of all except one east–west path, while Vaux did not believe that paths would negatively affect the park's purpose. The "General Plan for the Improvement of Morningside Park" was approved by the DPP in October 1887, and a request for $250,000 in bonds was approved by the Board of Estimate the following month. In mid-1888, contracts were awarded for earth and rock filling, and for the construction of basins, walls, and stairs in the southern portion of the park. Vaux suggested widening the roadbed and narrowing the eastern sidewalk of Morningside Drive, on the western side of the park. Further appropriations of $50,000 each were requested in September 1888 and March 1889. Subsequently, Vaux's suggestion to modify Morningside Drive was approved in July 1889, as was Kellogg's request for asphalt, concrete, and gravel for pavings. That September, the DPP voted to proceed with the completion of stairs and overlooks at Morningside Avenue north of 117th Street, in the same design as those built previously. Stairs and walls were finished that December. Further plans, approved in early 1890, called for the completion of the western entrances and overlooks, and the installation of railings and ornamentation. By December 1890, the Real Estate Record and Builders Guide reported that the work was almost done. The Guide said of the park, "It is not very wide, but it is some three-quarters of a mile in length. It has hills and dales and green swards, which, with its imposing terraces, make it