When people are looking for public space in New York City, they often look to the waterways. Of the many ideas in this vein, a new one is more ambitious than usual: an offshore park proposed for the Hudson River off of 14th Street.
Initial pricing puts the project, called Pier 55, at $170 million, and the proposal states that it would be located 186 feet from land and contain wooded areas and three performance venues, 6sqft reports.
Barry Diller, the billionaire Chairman of IAC, is sponsoring the plan. In fact, he initiated the design competition that produced this proposal. Thomas Heatherwick of Heatherwick Studio is responsible for the current plan for proposed park.
Diller has promised $130 million from the Diller-von Furstenberg Family Foundation, in addition to taking managerial responsibilities for the outdoor space and operating costs for the first 20 years. A veteran supporter of public projects, Diller was also the single largest donor to the High Line. The rest of the necessary funds, about $39.5 million, are to come from the city, state, and the Hudson River Park Trust.
Before the plan can go forward, the board of the Hudson River Park Trust, the Army Corps of Engineers, and the New York Department of Environmental Conservation must approve Pier 55.
Heatherwick's winning proposal for the park is based on 300 mushroom-shaped concrete columns, forming a parallelogram shape when combined. These columns would vary in height, making the park closer to the water in some places. This design allows sunlight to enter beneath the park, which is vital for the marine sanctuary in this area of the river.
The largest of the three proposed performance spaces would hold 1,000 people in the seats and 2,500 more on the lawn. The other two spaces would be an 800-seat amphitheater and a small stage with 250 seats.
Renderings courtesy Heatherwick Studios.
Related Stories
| Aug 11, 2010
Gilbane, Whiting-Turner among nation's largest university contractors, according to BD+C's Giants 300 report
A ranking of the Top 50 University Contractors based on Building Design+Construction's 2009 Giants 300 survey. For more Giants 300 rankings, visit /giants
| Aug 11, 2010
Rafael Vinoly-designed East Wing opens at Cleveland Museum of Art
Rafael Vinoly Architects has designed the new East Wing at the Cleveland Museum of Art (CMA), Ohio, which opened to the public on June 27, 2009. Its completion marks the opening of the first of three planned wings.
| Aug 11, 2010
World-Class Revival on Utah’s Capitol Hill
Since 1916, the Utah State Capitol building has served as the foundation of Utah’s government, housing the state legislature operations as well as the offices of the governor, attorney general, and treasurer. But after decades of wear and tear and numerous short-sighted modernization attempts, Utah’s rock was on the verge of crumbling.
| Aug 11, 2010
IFMA announces new Religious Facilities Community of practice
The International Facility Management Association is pleased to announce the formation of the Religious Facilities Community, a new community of practice devoted to those who work as full-time, part-time or volunteer facility managers in their houses of worship. IFMA’s communities of practice are organized special interest groups that unite members of specific industries not represented by the association’s councils.
| Aug 11, 2010
AASHE releases annual review of sustainability in higher education
The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) has announced the release of AASHE Digest 2008, which documents the continued rapid growth of campus sustainability in the U.S. and Canada. The 356-page report, available as a free download on the AASHE website, includes over 1,350 stories that appeared in the weekly AASHE Bulletin last year.
| Aug 11, 2010
Girl Scouts of San Jacinto Council Program Place Project
Houston, Texas
The Girl Scouts of San Jacinto Council Program Place is the headquarters for the largest Girl Scout Council in the U.S., with 63,000 scouts. The building houses the council’s administrative offices, a Girl Scout museum, and activity space. When an adjacent two-story office building became available, the council jumped at the chance to expand its museum and program space.
| Aug 11, 2010
Burt Hill, HOK top BD+C's ranking of the nation's 100 largest university design firms
A ranking of the Top 100 University Design Firms based on Building Design+Construction's 2009 Giants 300 survey. For more Giants 300 rankings, visit http://www.BDCnetwork.com/Giants
