NoMa Parks Foundation Celebrates Community Feedback for Underpass Design Competition Project
WASHINGTON, DC, November 21, 2014 — The NoMa Underpass Design Competition continues apace, now with thoughtful feedback from more than 350 people who took a survey launched in October.
“The NoMa Parks Foundation is thrilled at the amount of interest from the neighbors and other stakeholders,” said Robin-Eve Jasper, President of the NoMa Parks Foundation. “We are embarking on a number of transformational projects in NoMa using the same public/private partnership approach that has been the bedrock for the success of NoMa. As we work to create wonderful public spaces to delight residents and visitors, we will continue to look to the community for creative input and practical advice,” said Jasper. “We are excited at how engaged the neighborhood has already been in this process.”
The idea for the underpass improvements grew out of two community planning efforts sponsored by the NoMa BID, in 2011 and 2012. The objective of the underpass improvements is to fill the four connectors at Florida Avenue, L, M and K Streets, NE, with light and art, making them into beautiful and enjoyable spaces for passing through or lingering. The competition for designs for the underpasses launched in April 2014, garnered significant press and drew international attention. 248 designers from 14 countries submitted entries. The 248 original responses were narrowed to 13 qualified applicants and their concept designs.
The NoMa Parks Foundation sought feedback from the community and encouraged engagement through several outlets:
- The Foundation created a web site (NoMaUnderpasses.org), where images of all 13 finalist concepts are still available for viewing. The site has received more than 11,800 unique page views since the competition launched in April.
- The Foundation launched a 27-question survey in mid-October asking for input on the 13 underpass finalists; the survey received 337 responses.
- A public community meeting held on October 16 was well attended.
- A public exhibit of the submissions was displayed in the lobby of 1200 First Street, NE.
“We’d like to underscore that all 13 designs presented to the community were conceptual schemes, not construction plans. As we have been working continuously with city agencies, Amtrak and Metro on safety and other operating matters, we were particularly interested in the community’s input on aesthetics. There is much more work to be done, and the selected artists will incorporate agency and community feedback into their final designs,” Jasper said.
The Foundation hopes to select a finalist for at least one underpass by the end of the year, and start construction in 2015.
About The NoMa Parks Foundation
The NoMa Underpass Design Competition is led by the NoMa Parks Foundation, and is one of several projects that are proceeding concurrently to acquire land, improve existing sites, and execute the long-term vision set forth in the NoMa Public Realm Design Plan. The NoMa Parks Foundation was formed in 2012 and the following year received a $50 million commitment from the District government to acquire land, build parks and enhance public space in NoMa.
In the rapidly redeveloping NoMa neighborhood, one critical ingredient is missing: parks. More than 18,000 people live in greater NoMa, and the population is projected to double in the next 10 years; but currently NoMa contains no publicly accessible parks, playgrounds, or plazas. While the District of Columbia averages 12.9 acres of open space per 1,000 residents, none of these spaces exist in the NoMa neighborhood. They are urgently needed to serve the residents and more than 40,000 daytime employees and visitors to the neighborhood. Undeveloped land is becoming more scarce each year as development occurs on the remaining empty lots. The creation of refreshing, inviting parks and public spaces – before it is too late – will improve the lives of people in NoMa today and for generations to come. More about the NoMa Parks Foundation can be found at www.nomabid.org/parks.
About NoMa
NoMa is a vibrant, growing neighborhood nestled among Union Station, the U.S. Capitol, Shaw, and the H Street, NE corridor in Washington, D.C. Over the last several years, private developers have invested more than $5 billion in the 35-block area within the NoMa BID boundaries, and have plans to develop more than 16 million square feet of additional office, residential, hotel, and retail space. NoMa is home to more than 3,800 new apartments, and more than 40,000 people work in NoMa each day. With unparalleled transportation access via Amtrak, VRE, MARC, two Red Line Metro stops, and vehicular access to Interstate 395, visitors, workers and residents can easily travel throughout the region as well as to New York or anywhere on the East Coast. For more information about NoMa, visit www.nomabid.org and sign up for our bimonthly newsletter.
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For immediate release
News media contact:
Rachel Davis
202-997-3846
rdavis@nomabid.org
Behold: The ideas ten finalists have to transform four underpasses that connect the NoMa neighborhood.
The designs for underpasses on K Street, L Street, M Street and Florida Avenue NE all incorporate light in some way, whether it’s through projected images, an LED tree or a rain canopy.
Projectors could shine interactive art or sign language shapes on the walls of NoMa’s underpasses. Large sculptures made of LEDs could give visual interest to the ceilings and walls. Ten teams of architects envisioned ways (some dubious) to illuminate and enliven the tunnels where K, L, and M streets and Florida Avenue cross under the railroad tracks.
Washington, D.C., October 14, 2014 – The NoMa Parks Foundation invites the community to view the final 13 designs for the NoMa Underpass Design Competition at a community meeting on Thursday, October 16, 2014. Those who are unable to attend the meeting are invited to take an online survey, or view large image-rich boards of the projects and take a paper survey in the Lobby at 1200 First Street, NE, from October 14 to 17.
The NoMa Underpass Design Competition is an initiative of the NoMa Parks Foundation to beautify and improve the neighborhood’s four railroad underpasses (at Florida Avenue, K, L and M Streets, NE) with engaging artistic light installations. The project is a partnership between the District of Columbia government, WMATA, Amtrak and the NoMa Parks Foundation.
The Community Meeting
Date: Thursday, October 16, 2014
Time: 6-8 PM
Location: Lobby Project, 1200 First Street, NE
Light refreshments will be served.
Can’t attend the meeting? Take the survey, or stop by the Lobby to view the presentation boards of the finalist designs from Tuesday, October 14 at noon to Friday, October 17 at 6 PM.
A prestigious jury selected 10 distinguished artists, architects, lighting designers, and landscape architects representing three countries and seven cities across the United States as finalists in the competition. View a full list here.
With community feedback in hand, the jury will select the winners by year-end. Installation of the winning designs will begin in 2015.
“We encourage the neighborhood to come give their input on these incredible installations,” said Curtis Clay, Director of the NoMa Parks Foundation. “While much of the difficult technical work lies ahead, as we delve into the installation details of these pieces, we are excited to create a significant impact in these four underpasses as we transform them into exciting and beautiful passageways.”
The underpass competition has generated overwhelming interest and excitement since its announcement in April. During the Request for Qualifications (RFQ) phase, the Foundation received 248 submissions from 14 countries, including the District of Columbia. After a rigorous review, 49 semi-finalists were selected, which was then narrowed down to 10 finalists who submitted 13 project proposals for the four underpasses.
The competition’s jury is comprised of Elizabeth Broun, Director of the Smithsonian American Art Museum; Roger Lewis, FAIA, Architect, University of Maryland Professor Emeritus of Architecture, Washington Post Columnist; Robin Rose, Washington artist; George Hemphill, local art curator/gallery owner; and Charles “Sandy” Wilkes, Chair of the NoMa Parks Foundation.
About The NoMa Parks Foundation
The NoMa Underpass Design Competition is led by the NoMa Parks Foundation, and is one of several projects that are proceeding concurrently to acquire land, improve existing sites, and execute the long-term vision of the NoMa Public Realm Design Plan. The NoMa Parks Foundation was formed in 2012 and the following year received a $50 million commitment from the District government to acquire land, build parks and enhance public space in NoMa.
In the rapidly redeveloping NoMa neighborhood, one critical ingredient is missing: parks. More than 18,000 people live in greater NoMa, and the population is projected to double in the next 10 years; but currently NoMa contains no publicly accessible parks, playgrounds, or plazas. While the District of Columbia averages 12.9 acres of open space per 1,000 residents, none of these spaces exist in the NoMa neighborhood. They are urgently needed to serve the residents and more than 40,000 daytime employees and visitors to the neighborhood. Undeveloped land is becoming more scarce each year as development occurs on the remaining empty lots. The creation of refreshing, inviting parks and public spaces before it is too late will improve the lives of people in NoMa today and for generations to come. More about the NoMa Parks Foundation can be found at www.nomabid.org/parks.
About NoMa
NoMa is a vibrant, growing neighborhood nestled among Union Station, the U.S. Capitol, Shaw, and the H Street, NE corridor in Washington, D.C. Over the last several years, private developers have invested more than $5 billion in the 35-block area within the NoMa BID boundary, and have plans to develop more than 16 million square feet of additional office, residential, hotel, and retail space. NoMa is home to more than 3,900 new apartments, and more than 40,000 people work in NoMa each day. With unparalleled transportation access via Amtrak, VRE, MARC, two Red Line Metro stops, and vehicular access to Interstate 395, visitors, workers and residents can easily travel throughout the region as well as to New York or anywhere on the East Coast. For more information about NoMa, visit www.nomabid.org and sign up for our bimonthly newsletter.
###
For immediate release
News media contact:
Rachel Davis
202-997-3846
rdavis@nomabid.org
Washington, D.C., August 14, 2014 – The NoMa Parks Foundation has announced the 10 finalists for the NoMa Underpass Design Competition. A distinguished group of artists, architects, lighting designers, and landscape architects representing three countries and seven cities across the United States have been selected. The finalists will be given an honorarium to further develop their conceptual designs to transform four underpasses into safe, inspiring and beautiful spaces:
- Cinimod Studio + LDVC + Tall (London, UK)
- Citelum (Washington, DC)
- Future Cities Lab (San Francisco, CA)
- Lancaster + Matthew Schreiber (Brooklyn, NY)
- mikyoung kim design (Boston, MA)
- Narduli Studio (Los Angeles, CA)
- NIO Architects & Thurlow Small Architecture (Rotterdam, Netherlands & Pawtucket, RI)
- Ray King (Philadelphia, PA)
- Synthesis Design + Architecture & Moritz Waldemeyer (Los Angeles, CA & London, UK)
- United Visual Artists (London, UK)
Final designs will be presented to the community in October. With community feedback in hand, the jury will select the winners by year-end. Installation of the winning designs will begin in 2015. The project is a partnership between the NoMa Parks Foundation, the District of Columbia government, WMATA, and Amtrak.
“As the finalists embark on the last phase of the competition, excitement is growing in NoMa. Our transformed underpasses will unquestionably comprise a dynamic, signature moment here for years to come,” said Charles “Sandy” Wilkes, Chair of the NoMa Parks Foundation.
The purpose of the NoMa Underpass Design Competition is to transform the four underpasses at Florida Avenue, K, L, and M Streets, NE, from their current unappealing condition into light-filled, artistic spaces and improve the experience for pedestrians, cyclists and vehicular traffic.
The underpass competition has generated overwhelming interest and excitement since its announcement in April. During the Request for Qualifications (RFQ) phase, the Foundation received 248 submissions from 14 countries, including the District of Columbia. After a rigorous review, 49 semi-finalists were selected, which has now been narrowed down to 10 finalists.
The competition’s jury is comprised of Elizabeth Broun, Director of the Smithsonian American Art Museum; Roger Lewis, FAIA, Architect, University of Maryland Professor Emeritus of Architecture, Washington Post Columnist; Robin Rose, Washington artist; George Hemphill, local art curator/gallery owner; and Charles “Sandy” Wilkes, Chair of the NoMa Parks Foundation.
“The artists have been creative and inspiring in finding ways to transform these bleak underpasses into exciting urban spaces,” said Elizabeth Broun. “The jurying process has been thoughtful and professional. Congratulations to the NoMa BID and Foundation leadership for making the future of this neighborhood so much brighter.”
The competition is led by the NoMa Parks Foundation, and is one of several projects that are proceeding concurrently to acquire land, improve existing sites, and execute the long-term vision of the NoMa Public Realm Design Plan.
About The NoMa Parks Foundation
The NoMa Parks Foundation was formed in 2012 and the following year received a $50 million commitment from the District government to acquire land, build parks and enhance public space in NoMa.
In the rapidly redeveloping NoMa neighborhood, one critical ingredient is missing: parks. More than 18,000 people live in greater NoMa, and the population is projected to double in the next 10 years; but currently NoMa contains no publicly accessible parks, playgrounds, or plazas. While the District of Columbia averages 12.9 acres of open space per 1,000 residents, none of these spaces exist in the NoMa neighborhood. They are urgently needed to serve the residents and more than 40,000 daytime employees and visitors to the neighborhood. Undeveloped land is becoming more scarce each year as development occurs on the remaining empty lots. The creation of refreshing, inviting parks and public spaces before it is too late will improve the lives of people in NoMa today and for generations to come. More about the NoMa Parks Foundation can be found at www.nomabid.org/parks.
About NoMa
NoMa is a vibrant, growing neighborhood nestled among Union Station, the U.S. Capitol, Shaw, and the H Street, NE corridor in Washington, D.C. Over the last several years, private developers have invested more than $5 billion in the 35-block area within the NoMa BID boundary, and have plans to develop more than 16 million square feet of additional office, residential, hotel, and retail space. NoMa is home to more than 3,900 new apartments, and more than 40,000 people work in NoMa each day. With unparalleled transportation access via Amtrak, VRE, MARC, two Red Line Metro stops, and vehicular access to Interstate 395, visitors, workers and residents can easily travel throughout the region as well as to New York or anywhere on the East Coast. For more information about NoMa, visit www.nomabid.org and sign up for our bimonthly newsletter.
###
For immediate release
News media contact:
Rachel Davis
202-997-3846
rdavis@nomabid.org
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