Aitken Place Park is at the heart of Toronto’s East Bayfront Community – an area 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 creates a unique destination that invites residents, tourists, and visitors to engage with the lake regardless of season. Through extensive and ongoing consultations with residents, community groups, and private and public stakeholders, Aitken Place was designed to offer amenities that engage the community, reflect the site heritage, and provide a safe and enjoyable opportunity to connect with nature in a dynamic urban setting. Aitken Place Park is a cocoon nestled in a lushly planted frame, as the topography draws upon our natural instinct to ascend, perch, peer, and play in this retreat overlooking the lake.
Bayfront Parks Master Plan
Jersey City is bounded by the scenic Hudson to the east, lined with high rises and waterfront parks offering views of Manhattan, and the often-overlooked Hackensack to the west, featuring wetlands, industry, and degraded post-industrial sites. The Bayfront Redevelopment Master Plan aims to transform a formerly contaminated 100-acre site on the Hackensack River...
OCT Bay
Located in Shenzhen, OCT Bay has a combined site area of approximately 1.25 square kilometers including equal parts new urban center and nature preserve. SWA provided both master planning and landscape architectural services for the entire site. As a new urban cultural and entertainment destination, OCT Bay provides urban amenities, entertainment components, p...
Long Beach Shoreline
SWA prepared a land use and urban design plan for six miles of waterfront adjacent to downtown Long Beach. Through a series of meetings with local community stakeholders, we were able to determine the different needs of each district in the plan: of critical importance was the need to preserve valuable open space inland, and to maintain an ecological corridor ...
South Waterfront Greenway
A bold new plan for the area along the Willamette River includes a 1-1/2 mile extension of the City’s downtown’s parks and the reclamation of the river’s edge for public recreation. Working closely with the City of Portland, developers, and natural resource advocates, the design team devised a rational plan that places access and activity in targeted nodes wit...