After an exhibit at the Roger Williams Park Casino, a press conference and much public debate, Urbanscape takes second place in the Providence Waterfront Competition.
Rather than considering a new park as an isolated island in the middle of the city, the proposal extends and enhances existing activities on either side of the river. Its framework is plastic in flexibility, yet rigorous in organization. Urbanscape is a juxtaposition of contrasting elements functioning within the language of an ever-changing eventspace. The time-tested template of the classical park—its promenades, gridded allées of trees, and social gathering spaces—is reworked and adapted to respond to Providence’s history and needs. The result is a reinterpretation of historic forms with an emphasis on the interaction of natural and urban sensibilities.