Guiyang Hot Springs, located in Guiyang City, China, brings together the rhythm of the Nanming River, and surrounding trails and trees to create a new urban ‘living room’ in the interstitial space created by new development and roadway infrastructure. Nestled into a mountainous site, the master planning addressed elevation changes of up to 100 meters and the existing relationship of its topography and watersheds connected with the river. The vision incorporated a strategy to preserve ecological corridors while allowing for future development and tourism. The Phase 1 design uses the natural landscape framework and pathways along the river valley to guide a new circulation artery and community parks, emulating the concept of a flowering river. Linear terraces for green corridors reveal expansive views, while harboring varying habitats and facilitating ecological growth without extensive intervention. The subtle manipulation of the land creates seasonal creeks which change dynamically and reinforce the ecological and environmental habitat. The circulation network is accessible to pedestrians, bicycles, cars and boats, forming a major transportation system along the ten-mile river. Based on the rhythms of movement, water and trees, the design for Guiyang Hot Springs provides a natural respite within an urban environment that gives a corridor of community space to the people of Guiyang.
Katy Trail
Katy Trail represents a remarkable resource for the residents of the Dallas Fort Worth region. This project enlivens and makes accessible right-of-way established by the storied, but later abandoned, Missouri-Kansas-Texas (better known as the “Katy”) line, and serves as a unifying element for the surrounding neighborhoods. Katy Trail provides appro...
Martin Luther King Jr. Square Water Quality Demonstration Park
The City of Conway received local and federal grants to create a water quality demonstration park in a flood-prone, one-block area of its downtown to educate the public about Low Impact Development (LID) and Green Infrastructure (GI) methods and how they can enhance water quality. The project transformed a remediated brownfield site, ...
Milton Street Park
Milton Street Park is a 1.2-acre linear urban park alongside the Ballona Creek Bike Trail in Los Angeles, California. The plan incorporates numerous green-design elements, including the use of recycled materials, native planting, flow-through planters and treatment alongside the 1,000-foot-long, 45-foot-wide stretch of land. A variety of special elements such...
Polliwog Park
Originally built in the 1970s, Polliwog Park is a high-use neighborhood amenity that provides active recreation and play facilities to local families. The original playground was replaced in 2003 but required a full update in 2020 to account for routine flooding. SWA’s design allows the park to remain an active community feature year-round.
In addition ...