SCULP CITY PARK
Gansevoort Peninsula at Hudson River Park
New York City, USA
06 | 2016
Background
Gansevoort Peninsula has been deeply rooted into the mesh of New York City's Meatpacking District since its initial construction in the early to mid 19th century. The 5.5 acre site, initially developed on landfill, has encountered a series of transformations as it once housed the West Washington Market and currently serves as the final remnant of Thirteenth Avenue (deconstructed in the early 20th century to accommodate for increased marine activity). As its rich history continues to grow, Gansevoort Peninsula has now been offered to be redeveloped into a park under the Hudson River Park Trust.
Site Analysis
As of summer 2016, Gansevoort Peninsula hosted two structures including a Department of Sanitation building and the New York City Fire Department's Marine 1 Station. Adjacent to the site is 11th Avenue, the Whitney Museum of American Art, the High Line's south end, and several mixed-use buildings. All of these infrastructural elements were taken into consideration when creating park designs. Our visit to the site revealed the need for greater vegetation, improved pedestrian access due to the lack of street crossings, and better sea waste management as evident by the large amounts of trash that littered the peninsula's coast.
Preliminary
Inspiration for this park was derived from a variety of old and new public spaces which all showcase history while facilitating human activity. Major precedents of study included Klyde Warren Park located in Dallas, United States, Piazza San Marco located in Venice, Italy, and Garden City Shopping Mall located in Sau Paulo, Brazil. During the early stages, we brought our ideas together to create an organically formed layout that balanced and connected the city's strict grid to the free fluidity of the Hudson River. After analyzing the history and trends of nearby districts, one goal of the park was to help showcase the food and art of rising chefs and sculptors in an open space food court.
Mid-Stage
Quick and independent design progression revealed a lack of visual cohesiveness between infrastructural elements. To address this issue, we created a resource web and an early SketchUp model depicting how various engineering design elements came together to support the park as a whole. We strived to implement multifunctional systems for garbage collection, water filtration, and electric power that could work in tandem. Garbage collection systems utilized Seabins, which are capable of collecting both liquid and solid pollutants from devices placed at the surface of the Hudson river. Implementation of both natural vegetation and man-made solar trees eased the (previously mentioned) strict city grid vs fluid river flow transition in environmentally friendly manner. Weather and climate studies were also analyzed to make the sustainable park more resilient to extreme natural events.
Final
Our final product was a 20-minute keynote presentation which was presented to representatives from the US Army Corps. of Engineers, Government of New York City, and the Hudson River Park Trust Organization. All of the stakeholders lauded the ambitious, yet functional and practical nature of our project. Ideas shared during the presentation are expected to be implemented into future developments including the $260 million Pier 55 Little Island (completed in May 2021) and $70 million Gansevoort Peninsula Park (estimated completion in 2022).
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