Archinect - News

NBBJ and ESI Design's newly renovated Nickerson Gardens Playground in Watts opens

2023-08-21T17:31:00-04:00

NBBJ shares details of its Nickerson Gardens Playground renovation project in the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles as part of a grand opening held on August 16th at the site, which forms the center of what is the largest American public housing development west of the Mississippi River.

The project is part of a larger $1 billion redevelopment of the Nickerson Gardens public housing tract that was first designed by Paul Revere Williams in 1955. Along with the 17,656-square-foot renovation, the new life breathed into the site will also include a fitness center, new slides, a carousel, and other brightly-colored children’s play equipment from Kompan.

Project image render courtesy NBBJ.

Completed project build. Image courtesy NBBJ and photography by Ty Cole.

NBBJ designed the project pro bono alongside its East Coast experience design studio ESI Design and with the incorporation of a community feedback process that was led by the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles (HACLA). Red...

$82 million park space beneath LA's new Sixth Street Viaduct has broken ground

2023-08-09T08:00:00-04:00

Just over one year after the Sixth Street Viaduct replacement made its debut, Los Angeles city officials have commenced work on 12 acres of new park spaces at the foot of the $588-million bridge.

A groundbreaking ceremony was held on August 5th for the $82 million project, also known as the Sixth Street Park, Arts, and River Connectivity project (PARC). Landscape architecture firm Hargreaves Jones led the design.

Previously on Archinect: Take a look at new Iwan Baan photos of LA's Sixth Street Viaduct ahead of its grand opening

The park, which sits beneath the recently completed Sixth Street Viaduct, will include seven acres of open space on the east side of the Los Angeles River in Boyle Heights and five acres of space in the Arts District on the west side.

The Boyle Heights section will feature grass fields, picnic areas, a splash pad, event space, and sports fields and courts. The Arts District section will include a new arts plaza and river gateway, which will host spaces for performances, a café, and restrooms. Construction on PARC is expected to last around two-and-a-half years.

The 'healing nature' of Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects' new land bridge in Houston

2023-02-20T18:59:00-05:00

Named the Land Bridge and Prairie project, the new park was unveiled this weekend, when for the first time since the 1950s, visitors were able to cross over Memorial Drive and enjoy 1,500 acres of uninterrupted parkland at Memorial Park. Swelling like soft green mounds over a six-lane highway, the park is the latest example of how cities can mend the tears caused by disruptive roads without necessarily tearing them down.

Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects' Principal, Thomas Woltz, described his initial visit of the project’s site as a “post-nuclear landscape” when some 66 million trees suffered from a brutal drought in 2011. Since then, his firm has worked with city planners, archivists, and the Memorial Park Conservancy to consolidate the 20 disparate segments that had previously left the 1,500-acre park feeling “subdivided” to Houstonians.

Fast Company reports that "while the civic landscape was designed for people, the gently sloped nature of the mounds allows for small animals to cross over the highway as well (an underground stream allows for aquatic animals to pass under the highway, too.)"

With the addition of the land bridge, Houston joins Los Angeles County and San Francisco as communities aiming to adopt solutions for local wildlife to be able to move about freely. The total costs for the Land Bridge and Prairie project was funded by a $70 million donation from the local Kinder Foundat...

Hostile Architecture is making more and more people uncomfortable

2021-10-18T10:32:00-04:00

Lately, though, I’ve found myself sitting on a lot of cramped metal benches of the kind that don’t invite you to linger long, or harsh concrete ones that leave you cold. That’s because public seating is becoming an endangered species. If a park bench is not being removed, the backup plan is often to make it uncomfortable. “Hostile architecture” — an urban design strategy intended to impede “antisocial” behavior — is proliferating all over the world.

Cities like San Francisco and Boston have quietly removed seating over the last decade in misguided efforts to curb outdoor sleeping. Interventions like sleep-preventing benches and other forms of cruel deterrents aimed at the homeless population have spilled over into the public sphere.

Recently, the Seattle Art Museum stirred some backlash by installing defensive architecture on its campus as part of an upgraded security plan authored by director Amanda Cruz. Activist collective Design as Protest won this year’s Design Trust for Public Space RFP competition with an initiative that looked to create an alternative to the policies. Other groups have taken measures into their own hands. The New York Times’ Jonathan Lee offers a defense of public seating here.

UC Berkeley revises proposed People's Park housing scheme as Chancellor promises to accommodate its unhoused population

2021-09-01T16:48:00-04:00

An amended plan for new student housing at the University of California, Berkeley has been announced amidst protests surrounding the development that have touched on issues related to the state’s ongoing housing crisis.

Local outlets are now reporting that the planned dormitory in People’s Park will be reduced to 12 stories and moved to direct more sunlight onto the city’s landmark First Church of Christ, Scientist, which was designed by prominent Arts and Crafts Movement architect Bernard Maybeck in 1910.

The housing development as viewed from Dwight Way. Image courtesy LMS Architects / Hood Design Studio via UC Berkeley.

University Chancellor Carol Christ said the revised double-winged scheme will still be able to accommodate approximately 1,100 residents (down from the original 1,200) and that the school will wait until it can comply with demands of protesters before it breaks ground on the new housing complex.

Students gathered last week at the park’s iconic Sather Gate to prot...

Foster + Partners unveils designs for Greece's tallest tower

2021-07-09T15:27:00-04:00

Foster + Partners has released designs for what will be the tallest building in Greece. Located near Athens, Marina Tower will also be the first green high-rise building in Greece and the tallest green beachfront high-rise building in the Mediterranean.

Images © DBOX for Foster + Partners

The building is the centerpiece of a massive master plan, led by Foster + Partners and funded by Lamda Development, called the Ellinikon Masterplan. The project will sit on the site of the vacant Ellinikon International Airport and will include the construction of mixed-use districts as well as five other new skyscrapers.

The Marina Tower will stand at 650 feet tall and will contain 200 apartments on 45 floors. The high-rise is slender with a façade defined by balconies and hanging gardens. The extensive greenery reportedly allows the building to blend in with the surrounding natural environment and “the special character of the Mediterranean landscape.”

Images © DBOX for Foster + Partners

Accordi...

Exercise parks for senior citizens are popping up in cities worldwide

2019-11-04T15:42:00-05:00

[A]lthough culture does play a role, it is park location, design and amenities that most influence use among senior citizens. “Often older adults feel not welcome in parks that are primarily designed for younger populations,” [Professor Anastasia Loukaitou-Sideris, a professor of urban planning at UCLA] says. “In other words, parks are not psychologically accessible to them.”

Inspired by the exercise “playgrounds” for senior citizens that are common in China, similar parks are being designed in cities worldwide. The article takes a look at the specific design elements that are needed to make these parks appealing to older adults, as well as why these parks should be more of a priority in urban design.

Have public parks transitioned into privatized spaces filled with defensive urban design techniques?

2019-07-26T14:18:00-04:00

There is the vision of parks, and public space more generally, as space free from institutional control or coercion—from police, or parks ambassadors, and encroaching privatization. And then there is the vision of public space as controlled and orderly, for passive use, or for recreation and entertainment. 'Users of this space must be made to feel comfortable, and they should not be driven away by unsightly homeless people or unsolicited political activity...'

With the privatization of spaces steadily increasing the idea of a genuine public space seems to be an ideal of the past. The importance of public space, specifically public parks is an integral part of a thriving city and community. However, laws and new policies are being re-configured to appease spaces like public parks to satisfy a specific demographic.

According to a recent article by Toronto-based journalist Matthew Braga, he shares the looming possible future of a city's battle with public space. In his piece for The Local, Braga shares, "There is a long history of bureaucracy and bylaws being wielded against the poor, and cities have gone to great lengths to make those experiencing homelessness feel unwelcome in public spaces." Initiatives for local city government's enforcing defensive design techniques.

A balance between maintaining public space for all while regulating disruptive behaviors are approached with conflicting views. Have public parks become new territories fo...

Central Park's long forgotten design alternative

2018-11-09T19:03:00-05:00

The iconic landscape of New York wouldn't be complete without a view of Central Park. But, what if the beloved New York staple could have looked different? It's hard to envision Central Park any other way, but after the uncovering of a long forgotten park plan was rediscovered renderings could prove otherwise.

Central Park Image © Airpano

Rendering of John J. Rink's Central Park submission Image © Budget Direct

In 1858, a design competition invited individuals to submit their ideas for the construction of, at the time, an area of unused space. For a prize of $2000, submissions had to include various features ranging from a fountain, skating arena, parade ground, four major cross streets, and a room for an exhibition hall.

Rendering of John J. Rink's Central Park submission Image © Budget Direct

After reviewing 33 potential park designs two individuals by the name of F.L. Olmsted and C. Vaux and their plan, "Plan Number 33," was selected. Thanks to their submission Central Park loo...

Construction begins on Atlanta's largest public park by John Portman & Associates

2018-09-10T15:49:00-04:00

Construction has begun on Atlanta's soon-to-be largest park by John Portman & Associates. The repurposed quarry pit will not only provide an outdoor recreational area but also create 2 billion gallons of emergency drinking water for Atlanta, increasing the city’s emergency water reserves from 3 to 30 days.

The first phase of Westside Park at Bellwood Quarry includes constructing a signature gateway for the park's entrance. Once completed, the new green space will be 100 acres larger than Atlanta’s currently largest park.

Diller Scofidio + Renfro's Moscow park sparks wild urbanism on another level

2018-08-24T13:58:00-04:00

As Moscow’s Zaryadye Park approaches its first birthday next month, the city’s chief architect, Sergei Kuznetsov, is defending the Diller Scofidio + Renfro-designed green space for an unexpected feature: its aphrodisiacal properties. Just a stone’s throw from the Kremlin, the firm’s carefully crafted experiment in “wild urbanism” has lived up to its billing, apparently, becoming something of a hotbed for outdoor lovemaking.

Moscow's one year old $245 million public park by Diller Scofidio + Renfro was meant to bring freedom of exploration and a feeling of comfort within the urban setting. The space provides visitors with an amphitheater, flora-covered terraces, green spaces with views of the city, and a 230 foot walkway over the Moscow river. The public space has also seen a high number of couples caught on park cameras having sex. "Wild urbanism" indeed.

Charles Renfro exclaims, “I love this! What freedom our park has brought to Moscow, and what tolerance it seems to be engendering from the authorities.”

Diller Scofidio + Renfro present "The Mile-Long Opera" along the High Line this fall

2018-07-09T14:45:00-04:00

Diller Scofidio + Renfro together with Pulitzer Prize-winning composer David Lang present The Mile-Long Opera: a biography of 7 o’clock, a 5 night series of performances taking place along the High Line. Featuring 1,000 singers from across NYC, this extensive community engagement initiative will allow audience members to actively participate among choral work throughout the park.

Singers rehearsing for the The Mile-Long Opera. Image: Luis Paez.

Elizabeth Diller explains, “After working on the design of the High Line for over a decade and witnessing the rapid transformation of the surrounding area, I thought a lot about the life cycle of the city—its decay and rebirth—full of opportunities and contradictions."

The performances will take place from October 3-7, 2018. Admission is free, however advanced tickets are required and will be available at milelongopera.com starting September 5.

62-acre site along Chicago River to be developed with potential for Amazon's HQ2

2018-05-14T15:13:00-04:00

A hardscrabble half-mile stretch along the Chicago River's South Branch would become a vibrant neighborhood of cutting-edge architecture, parks and a riverwalk in the plans a developer unveiled Thursday for the last big piece of empty land near downtown. Developer Related Midwest plans a transformation of the vacant, relatively isolated 62-acre site into a vibrant neighborhood of homes, restaurants, cultural institutions and businesses...

The currently undeveloped site along Chicago's river has been named "The 78", declaring its scale large enough to add to the city's official number of 77 neighborhoods. The site is also rumored to be a contender for Amazon's HQ2 if the city is chosen, which would require reworking current plans.

Current 62-acre riverfront site in Chicago. Image: Mark Segal/Related Midwest.

Plans for the massive development include 13 million square feet of building space for residential, office, educational and other uses. 12 acres would be dedicated to parkland or public riverwalk with a performance venue. Related Midwest stated that affordable housing was an important part of its housing development.

Rendering of the education hub and riverwalk. Image: Related Midwest.

The new site would also extend three existing city streets through the property to create through routes for bikes. A metro stop would be added to the Red Line, as well as potentially adding a Water Taxi stop.

...

Take a look at the renderings for First and Broadway Park in Los Angeles

2017-05-30T13:56:00-04:00

Back in June of 2016, Mia Lehrer + Associates won the competition, beating out Eric Owen Moss Architects, Brooks + Scarpa, and AECOM, to design the two-acre park at First Street and Broadway. After winning the competition, the firm has taken suggestions from the Downtown community, altering their plans for the design. Settling on a greener approach, the new plan reserves roughly 10,000 square feet as green "meadow" space.

The original plan featured a two-story structure, designed by OMA, that would host a restaurant on the second floor and below, an outdoor amphitheater and cafe. While the structure will remain, the new designs include a rooftop deck and shade structure.

The park is expected to cost $28 million, and will be fully funded through Quimby fees, fees imposed on developers for the creation of public parks. The landscape architecture firm known for being one of the driving forces behind the 2007 Los Angeles River Revitalization Master Plan will continue to work on plans fo...

Dror's plan for Istanbul's Parkorman offers the city a love story with nature

2017-03-21T18:38:00-04:00

The lack of public greenery is a concern troubling many urban areas around the world. For city-dwellers living in increasingly dense neighborhoods, nature often becomes synonymous with a singular tree or two as existing green spaces are few and far between. Istanbul, as the heart of Turkey, is one of the most congested cities in the world and has been struggling with the loss of public greenery due to privatization and population growth. Back in 2013, a riot over Gezi Park broke out as citizens desired to protect one of the cities last remaining green spaces from development.

Dror, the NY-based design practice, has plans to address this dearth with their new master plan for Istanbul’s Parkorman. Located six miles north of the city center, Dror plans to counter the industrialized city-scape by “designing a love story between people and nature in a city with no Central Park.”

From the architects: We set out to create a park that dissolves the anxiety and fear that often accompanies an...

Mia Lehrer + OMA win over Eric Owen Moss, Brooks + Scarpa, AECOM to design DTLA's new public park

2016-06-10T14:52:00-04:00

Los Angeles is in for a lot of (proposed) change, especially in its downtown core. Yesterday, the City of L.A. announced Mia Lehrer + Associates and OMA as the winners of a competition to design a new public park called the FAB Park...Proposed for the well-trafficked streets of First and Broadway in downtown L.A., the 1.96-acre FAB Park will integrate “the themes of food, art, and land.”

Find out more on Bustler.

Previously on Archinect:

Take a look at these bold visions for Downtown LA's next park

A critical look at Downtown L.A.'s ambitious plans for two new public parks

Agence Ter and Team wins Pershing Square Renew with “radically flat“ proposal

Where journalism neglects, public space suffers

2016-03-09T15:42:00-05:00

“Shady,” “unethical,” “secretive,” “robbed of our due process” — these were just a few of the choice terms used by angry residents this past week at a packed City Council meeting about the selling of Pine Tree Park [in Kent, outside of Seattle, WA]. Longtime Seattle land-use attorney Rick Aramburu has another term for what happened: illegal. It’s also a growing trend in the swath of cities around Seattle, places that no longer receive much scrutiny from the press. “It’s becoming a cancer"

More on recent (legal) park development:

A critical look at Downtown L.A.'s ambitious plans for two new public parks

2016-02-26T21:24:00-05:00

One thing, though, is different this time around. These days the city and county are busy investing money and lavishing attention on public spaces across L.A. — and even producing some from scratch...In a range of ways, Southern California is beginning to make up for neglecting its public realm for the bulk of the postwar era.

With two park design competitions currently underway (linked below), Downtown L.A. is eager to boost its amount of green space. But will those ambitious plans pan out in a tricky cityscape? Christopher Hawthorne gives his two cents on the potential of each park.

Previously on Archinect:

Take a look at these bold visions for Downtown LA's next park

Pershing Square Renew competition narrows down to four finalist teams

"The Hills" park in NYC scheduled to open almost a year in advance

2016-01-25T15:14:00-05:00

The Hills on Governors Island will welcome visitors this summer — nearly a year ahead of schedule, it was announced last week — and add 10 acres of green space to the city, largely in the form of four artificial hills. Made of recycled construction debris and clean fill, the hills rise as high as 70 feet above the island...An unseasonably warm fall contributed to faster-than-expected construction times.

You can find more photos and renderings from the Governors Island's Flickr here and here.

Scroll down for a drone video of the park under construction.

More about public parks on Archinect:

Pershing Square Renew competition narrows down to four finalist teams

BIG unveils 28-acre master plan for Pittsburgh's Lower Hill District

Taking a stand against privately-owned public spaces

Locals welcome The 606, a.k.a. Chicago's "High Line", but anxiety for its future remains

Talking parks with Adrian Benepe, senior vice president of The Trust for Public Land

2015-11-13T18:53:00-05:00

Before becoming senior vice president for The Trust for Public Land in 2012, Adrian Benepe spent 11 years working as New York City Park Commissioner under Mayor Michael Bloomberg, overseeing such projects as the High Line, Hudson River Park, Brooklyn Bridge Park and Central Park's renovation, among others. The sheer level of Manhattan park development under his tenure has been compared to the changes amassed under Robert Moses.

Now at the nonprofit Trust, which is headquartered in San Francisco but operates throughout the US, Benepe focuses on providing public park space for people in urban areas, to "ensure that everyone has access to nature within a 10-minute walk from home," (in the words of the Trust). While visiting Los Angeles for the Dwell on Design conference earlier this year, Benepe spoke with me about his path to TPL, how green space is necessary for resiliency, and the symbiotic relationship between the public and private in parks. Listen below:

From the interview: info on...

Transforming a garbage heap into a public park

2015-07-02T17:37:00-04:00

Since the capping and closure of Fresh Kills’ five mounds, this 2,200-acre expanse of wetlands, marshlands, dry lowlands, forests, and grasslands has evolved into an unusual combination of natural and engineered beauty.

Originally a patch of creeks and marshland on the western shore of Staten Island, the area now known as Fresh Kills became a major landfill for New York City in 1948, once Robert Moses bought the land for housing development. His plan was to solidify the marshland with waste for a few years, and then build. But construction never happened, and for the remainder of the 20th century, the area served as a 2,200-acre garbage heap (by comparison, Central Park covers 843 acres). People hated it, and in 2001 managed to get the city to close it down, and begin the process of transforming it back into its (more or less) former ecological state, to be used as a public park known as Freshkills.

Learn more about Freshkills' storied past: