the climb at brooklyn bridge
New York, NY
Program Landscape, Public Walk, Observation Room
Size 3600 sf
Client New York City Council and Van Alen Institute
Year Competition 2020
Bridges are time-portals: they carry us into our futures - and they connect us to our past. As architects and bridge lovers, cyclists and urban dwellers, we reimagined The Climb at Brooklyn Bridge to be an unconventional intervenion aimed at detangling congestion, increasing capacity, and reducing carbon footprint, but most importantly inspiring the bridge-builder inside each and every one of us. This proposal recognizes the value of “the big idea”, by which visionary infrastructure defines our civic space. We recognize the following opportunities for how this project can contribute to the portfolio of New York City’s “Destination Infrastructure”: (1) revamped access and mobility options for all visitors, (2) an innovative new linear park and (3) the opportunity to experience first-hand the perspective of the original builders.
The Brooklyn Bridge is anchored at the heart of our version of humanities’ best idea: a thriving and equitable urban realm devoted to healthy and resilient citizens and ecosystems. Originally built to overcome congested ferry-traffic and to join two of the fastest growing cities in the United States, the Brooklyn Bridge has since unified New York City and become a global destination. By acknowledging the importance of improving the capacity of all current traffic flows on the upper level – pedestrian, runner, cyclist, each with different levels of mobility – The Climb introduces a new and expanded promenade in order to eliminate multi-modal bottlenecks and dangerous crossings. The pedestrian experience begins with new elevated approaches before descending to a widened common promenade that extends the full span of the historic bridge. Bicycle access remains at street level and utilizes the existing concrete approach ramps. Vendor booths are shifted out of heavily trafficked paths and occupy a more central position at the newly created Tower Square public space.
