North Bund Riverside Park, located on a prominent 2.1 km waterfront along Shanghai’s Huangpu River, is the first project of its kind in Shanghai to address contiguous waterfront open space. The goal of the associated international competition was to find innovative solutions to transform a post-industrial waterfront with historic elements into a viable active place for the city’s residents. SWA’s winning proposal for the park is concentrated on the concept of ‘fluidity’, referring to the fluid movements of the tidal river, transportation systems and people within a complex waterfront site. The concept seeks to understand the various circulation requirements of landscape and architecture and merge them into a set of graceful, flowing system of pathways, roadways and interconnected spaces. By allowing ongoing uses of passive and active recreation, the design orients itself toward accommodating the flooding condition of the river. Additionally, open plazas and small parks are integrated into the landscape to allow for places of respite for visitors, playing off of the ‘borrowed landscape’ of buildings, ramps and platforms in order to heighten user experience. Embedded vestiges of the past are incorporated into the plan, including design elements such as light poles, bollards, graphics, rails and cranes, and are now used to enhance and connect the past to the present and future. Through an understanding and sensitivity to tidal changes, historic architectural elements, and transportation networks, SWA has created a master plan designed to provide a seamless and integrated landscape that embeds itself in and ultimately enhances the waterfront of Shanghai.
Fort Wayne Riverfront
As a city that was built and thrived because of its location as a crossroads between wilderness and city, farm and market, the realities of infrastructure both natural and man-made are at the heart of Fort Wayne’s history. We consider waterways as an integral part of open spaces of the City, forming a series of infrastructural systems that affect the dynamics ...
Shenzhen Longgang River Blueway
Shenzhen’s Blueway Initiative is envisioned to activate the industry and culture of its urban communities, unlock the tremendous land value of the watershed, and inject sustainable vitality into Shenzhen’s future growth. The design is inspired by the interplay of the blueway’s five systems: hydrology, ecology, leisure, industry, and culture. The design strateg...
Wusong Riverfront
Kunshan, China, located near Shanghai, has experienced unprecedented population and business growth in recent years which has resulted in environmental degradation and the need for the city to reshape its identity. SWA’s proposal aims to create a new waterfront district providing businesses as well as residents with public amenities and viable open space. The ...
Sava Promenada at the Belgrade Waterfront
This one-million-square-meter waterfront development, the single largest regeneration project in Serbia’s history, aims to create a world-class, sustainable destination for civic and cultural attractions, forging human and physical connections to the Sava River where none existed before. Located near the historic town center of Belgrade, the site’s...