Today, many years later, cities across America are actively reclaiming their waterfronts for public use.

 

APT was awarded First Prize in this international design competition for the re-conceptualization of the Westside waterfront in Manhattan, from Battery Park City to 44th Street.

 

The studio’s premise for the project: “Every city has its own logical urban structure, generated and shaped by its design, history, and geography. Every site has its own morphological character, shaped by its relationship with nature as well as with the built environment. Any urban intervention should recognize and understand both the urban structure and the site character as the starting points for architectural ideas.”

The design concept was for streets to extend well into the river, flanked by new piers about 60 feet wide and 120 feet high. The use of the new structures would reflect the character of the adjoining neighborhoods.

Five marinas, including the conversion of Pier 40, marked the various neighborhoods. They would have mixed commercial and residential use besides serving as ferry terminals.

The natural shoreline along the project site, a visceral memory of the original seaboard, is interlaced with the city blocks, streets, and pier structures. The reconstructed shoreline would become a park, a natural recreational space contrasting with the built environment.

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Selected Publications/Exhibits

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Controspazio - Chiarezza e semplicita’: lo studio Pagnamenta e Torriani a New York - Cristina Finucci - 1998

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From Architecture to Art, Solo show of APT ARCHITECTURE work and art, Swiss Institute of Contemporary Art, New York, NY, 1990

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Progressive Architecture - West Side Waterfront - Raymond Gastil - 1988

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Arredo Urbano - New York Wanted a Waterfront - Cinzia Abbate - 1988