The entries in the Pier Design Contest are in, and the options are as interesting as they are different.
The three architectural firms, selected from a field of nine diverse semi finalists yesterday are Michael Maltzan Architecture, West 8 Urban Design and Landscape Architecture, and BIG.
— I love the 'burg'
9 Comments
Is it just me or is the West 8 the most normal pier-looking and under-stated of the bunch. Maybe it is just the renders...
BIG.DK is becoming a victim of its own whimsy.
Pretty sure that's just you Nam. Can't say I've ever been on a doughnut shaped pier.
clint would you argue that the others are more pier like?
I would say while this one isn't a donut it is ovular and i can see the resemblance.
LOL, like Florida would spend any money on any of this.
James as if we have any money to spend. unless all privately financed...
actually, they have $50m set aside for construction... i must say that i'm pretty disappointed in all 3 proposals for my former home town... although i haven't had a chance to take a careful look at the full proposals...
who has set aside the money? Is it a city driven/funded project?
I lived in St. Petersburg for many years. I consider the city my home town. The current pier is a parking lot with few reasons to actually go into the flipped-pyramid of a building. The only time people actually flock to this pier is to watch fireworks on New Years and July 4th.
Out of the three proposals only BIG offers something programmatically different to the neighborhood and the city. It offers a commercial destination and striking landmark to entice recreation --- wonderful reasons for people to walk several hundred meters off shore in a city and state that is dominated by cars and air conditioning. The two others only present an open recreational program for recreational people where views into the bay are actually dark and silty --- you rarely see wild life in the bay. Proposing a white sandy island is a lie as the tide and heavy sea vegetation will slowly ruin the picturesque proposal. Proposing winding, shaded pathways to create an outdoor aquarium for pedestrians is also a pipe dream; it's just another open park but over water.
The new pier needs to be a destination that excites residents and tourists everyday of the year. The proposal of BIG offers just that.
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