The JFK Boulevard Streetscape update responds to one of the nation’s most transit-oriented urban districts, where nearly 70% of Philadelphia’s University City residents commute by foot, bike, or public transit. As the primary gateway to 30th Street Station, the third-busiest Amtrak station in the country, JFK Boulevard carried the weight of a major civic corridor while remaining designed almost entirely around the personal vehicle, a disconnect that contributed to a disproportionate number of traffic crashes. The redesign advances the vision of the Schuylkill Yards Master Plan, a landmark partnership between Brandywine Realty and Drexel University to reimagine this stretch of Philadelphia’s skyline, rebalancing the street for all modes while improving safety and environmental performance.
The transformed boulevard is conceived as an outstanding public space in its own right: a multimodal streetscape that reflects the evolving character of University City and anticipates the high-density, mixed-use growth being realized through Schuylkill Yards. Innovative placemaking anchors the emerging neighborhood’s identity and supports its continued momentum, creating a corridor that is as memorable and equitable as the community it serves. SWA/Balsley worked closely with the Philadelphia Department of Streets, Philadelphia Water Department, Amtrak, SEPTA, and PennDOT to achieve this outcome.
Jinbocho Redevelopment
Situated in central Tokyo’s university and publishing district, this new mixed-use project brought urban streetscape character to its immediate neighborhood through the introduction of plazas whose fountains, seating areas, cafes and sculptures serve residents, workers, and the community as a refuge from the busy streets.
A diagram of pedestrian flows t...
Gate City Osaki
“I do sculpture as it relates to my designs, and as the sculpture emerges from the designs it becomes collaborative. This is gratifying because the sculpture is very much in keeping with the overall landscaping concept. It is not an afterthought,” writes Tom Balsley. Here we see the full integration of his sculptural expression in the overall landscape design ...
Aitken Place Park
Aitken Place Park will be at the heart of Toronto’s East Bayfront Community – currently being transformed from an underutilized industrial brownfield into a vibrant waterfront neighborhood. Flanked by the residential development to the west and the commercial buildings to the north, the park’s water’s edge location presents a unique opportunity to create...
Peggy Rockefeller Plaza
Stretching along nine blocks of New York City’s Upper East Side, Rockefeller University is a world-renowned medical research institution with an impressive roster of Nobel Prize winners — and beautiful river views. Once a harmonious urban oasis of 19th century buildings and 20th century modernism stitched together by a renowned Dan Kiley landscape, the c...