A Publication of the Riverlife Task Force / Spring 2006 If this email doesn't display properly, click here to view it online. COMPETITION PRESS COVERAGE Riverlife Task Force plans competition to design footbridge across Ohio River Walkway plan sought for West End Bridge 7 finalists chosen in West End Bridge competition Editorial: Asides PREMIER ISSUE: WEST END PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE COMPETITION Why A Pedestrian Bridge at the West End? by Lisa Schroeder Executive Director, Riverlife Task Force The view from the deck of the West End Bridge, high above the headwaters of the Ohio, is certainly one of the most spectacular urban vistas in the United States. The West End Bridge serves as a gateway to Pittsburgh, framing the city's great skyline and the famous Point State Park fountain. The bridge marks the confluence of the Monongahela and Allegheny Rivers and signals the point where the headwaters of the Ohio River begin to flow west. It links the north and south shorelines, and serves as a major artery bringing traffic from outlying communities across the river to the city. The West End Bridge also defines the westernmost boundary of Three Rivers Park—the grand, urban park under development along Pittsburgh's riverfronts. Yet for all its beauty and symbolic importance, it is not accessible to pedestrians, trail users, bikers, or other non-vehicular traffic. Instead, it poses a significant gap in Pittsburgh's riverfront trail system. Access to the bridge is limited to steep staircases and walkways enclosed in chain link and the narrow pathway adjacent to multiple lanes of heavy vehicular traffic makes the experience harrowing. There is no connection to the water below or to adjacent neighborhoods on either shore. Yet the West End Bridge represents a major opportunity to extend the positive economic, social, and cultural impacts of riverfront development by creating a pedestrian bridge that will serve as a visual icon and attract people to the bridge and waterfront—as well as to neighboring communities—like never before. To meet this challenge, Riverlife, with support from Alcoa Foundation, launched the West End Pedestrian Bridge Design Competition to seek solutions from designers and architects around the world. Participants were asked to use creativity to mediate the gaps for boaters, pedestrians and cyclists of all ages and bring the bridge into the everyday experience of residents and visitors. When realized, the West End Pedestrian Bridge will complete a spectacular loop of trails around the river confluence, and visitors will be able to stroll along and across the Ohio River, taking in exhilarating views of the surrounding hills, valleys and Pittsburgh's majestic skyline. Seven Teams Selected to Proceed to Stage Two of Pedestrian Bridge Design Competition The first stage of the West End Pedestrian Bridge Competition is complete and seven teams have been selected to proceed to stage two. Three of the teams were chosen from the eighty-five entrants in the open competition. The remaining four teams were selected from an RFQ process that ran parallel to the open competition. Bridgescape LLC Columbia, Maryland Endres Ware Berkeley, California http://www.endresware.com/ Index Space Architecture Miami, Florida http://www.indexspacearchitecture.com/ La Dallman Architects Milwaukee, Wisconsin http://www.ladallman.com/ Llonch + Vidalle Architecture Buenos Aires / New York City http://www.llonch-vidalle.com/ TEN Arquitectos Mexico City / New York City http://www.ten-arquitectos.com/ West 8 Urban Design and Landscape Architecture Rotterdam, The Netherlands http://www.west8.nl/ Open Competition Honorable Mention: 4240 Architecture, Chicago, IL Architecture Denver, Denver, CO Claus Gade and Peter Leuchsenring, Denmark David Roth, Pittsburgh, PA Hiroyuki Futai, Tokyo, Japan In the upcoming Stage II, the teams will be provided with additional information about the site and will be asked to develop a more advanced design proposal. Each team will have 30 days to develop their submission. Teams will be invited to participate in a site visit and information session in Pittsburgh on March 30th. Each team will receive a $15,000 stipend to offset the cost of travel and of developing their submission. At the end of Stage II, the Competition Jury will reconvene and identify the winner. Cash prizes will be awarded to first, second and third placeholders in the amounts of $7,500, $5,000, and $2,500 respectively. Further, the Riverlife Task Force and the appropriate public agencies may enter into negotiations with the top-ranked firm for design services for the new pedestrian bridge, access ways, and water landings as the project moves forward. Take a look at all the Stage 1 entries at http://www.riverlifecompetition.org/. Carnegie Science Center and Riverlife Urge Children to Explore Urban Design and Engineering Carnegie Science Center will partner with Riverlife and the West End Pedestrian Bridge Competition to create new opportunities for the region's children and teens to explore urban design and engineering through hands-on activities throughout the summer of 2006. These new programs will include: Urban Design Summer Camp for Children Carnegie Science Center will conduct a week long urban Design Camp for children of grades 4–6. Students will utilize the riverfront and travel on the rivers to explore a number of concepts related to the design and planning of cities, including: Understanding the environmental impact of building on and adjacent to rivers, including the impact on plants and animals, as well as ways to mitigate negative impacts; Examining various bridge designs and engineering techniques illustrated in Pittsburgh; and Exploring ways in which urban design provides for human access and enhances the quality of life of the city's residents. Science in Your Neighborhood Summer Camp and Afterschool Program Science in Your Neighborhood (SIYN) is Carnegie Science Center's afterschool program, serving at risk high school students from the Pittsburgh Public Schools. Program participants, known as Youth Explorers, will participate in a week-long summer camp on urban design. Following the summer camp, the Youth Explorers will develop urban design activities for elementary age students. They will then deliver four weekly programs to four afterschool sites serving elementary children in at risk communities. Public Model Bridge-Building Competition Each weekend throughout the summer 2006, visitors to Carnegie Science Center will be able to engage in a model bridge building competition. Simple materials will be provided and visitors will be challenged to construct the strongest bridge. Bridges will be tested to weight capacity and each day a winner will be determined. At the close of summer, all daily winners will compete to determine the overall winner whose bridge supported the greatest weight. Prizes will be awarded each day. These exciting new educational programs are a significant part of the West End Pedestrian Bridge project and are generously supported by a grant from Alcoa Foundation. Riverlife Task Force The Riverlife Task Force is a nonprofit corporation established in 1999 to create a vision "to make Pittsburgh's urban waterfront one of the most spectacular in the world." A group of 55 civic leaders, the Task Force is now dedicated to facilitating the future development of Three Rivers Park as a public asset and is an advocate for strategic riverfront planning and development to integrate the rivers into the life of the city. Now in its seventh year—and with the creation of Three Rivers Park already underway—Riverlife continues to attract Pittsburghers and visitors to our city's greatest attribute. Successfully reconnecting the community with the water, the Task Force has brought life, recreation and economic opportunity back to our riverfronts. The Riverlife Task Force is supported and funded through the generous contributions of foundations and businesses across the region. If you'd prefer not to receive email from the Riverlife Task Force, please email info@riverlifetaskforce.org with "unsubscribe" in the subject line. Riverlife Task Force, 425 Sixth Ave., Suite 1340, Pittsburgh, PA 15219 © 2006 Riverlife Task Force