Soundview Park, built on 212 acres of landfill at the junction of the Harlem and East Rivers in the South Bronx, is the most significant recreational facility in Community Board 9. As part of the PlanNYC initiative, Thomas Balsley Associates was selected as the lead designer of Soundview’s master plan. This brownfield remediation will drastically improve both the social and environmental well-being of the community. TBA’s site and regional analysis has helped to define design and programming objectives for the next phase of the project to ensure that the needs of the community are supported by a thorough understanding of the site’s ecological history.
The design goals include creating Neighborhood Gateway park spaces at the edges of the residential communities, developing passive recreation opportunities, enhancing existing active recreation opportunities, opening the waterfront and creating a naturalized zone in the contaminated landfill areas through environmental remediation.
Hunter's Point South Waterfront Park
Hunter’s Point South Waterfront Park was envisioned as an international model of urban ecology and a world laboratory for innovative sustainable thinking. The project is a collaboration between Thomas Balsley Associates and WEISS/MANFREDI for the open space and park design with ARUP as the prime consultant and infrastructure designer.
What was once a ba...
Westshore Park
Complementing the Inner Harbor’s world-famous promenade, Westshore Park has come to be known as the city’s living room on the harbor. The park is strategically located on the innermost shore of the harbor and sandwiched between the new Baltimore Visitor Center and the Maryland Science Center. Having rediscovered its maritime heritage and opened it to the world...
Residences at W New York Downtown
The Residences at W New York Downtown is located in lower Manhattan. The at-grade public plaza creates an urban space with a food kiosk surrounded by a large raised wood deck with table, chairs, and built-in custom stainless steel benches and bar seating along the perimeter. A series of interplaying IPE wood and pre-cast concrete benches creates seating and co...
South Waterfront Greenway
The new urban plan for South Waterfront includes a 1-1/2 mile extension of downtown’s waterfront parks and the reclamation of the Willamette River for public recreation. The design team worked closely with the City of Portland, developers, and natural resource advocates to strike a balance between development, recreation and re-naturalization of this neglected...