2005 - St. Louis, MO, USA
St. Louis Riverfront Masterplan
St. Louis, MO, USA
CLIENT Great Rivers Greenway District / STATUS 2005 / SIZE 3/4 miles, 44 acres DESIGN TEAM Balmori Associates, HOK Planning Group, Greenberg Consultant , CDG engineers, ABNA Engineering, Consulmar, Moffat and Nichol, Vector Communications.
In 2005, Balmori Associates was selected as lead landscape designer for the St. Louis Riverfront Project, an 80 acre site located at the foot of the Gateway Arch on the banks of the Mississippi River. Throughout the years, The Gateway Arch has stood in celebration of St. Louis’ prominence on the banks of the Mississippi River, but access to these banks has been underwhelming. With the St. Louis Riverfront Masterplan, Balmori Associates’ aims to reconnect people with the Mississippi by providing year round recreation on the water, an integrated bicycle and pedestrian system, a terraced riverwalk, event areas for large gatherings, and docking for local riverboats.
During the Master Planning Phase, four principles emerged as the strategies that would guide the St. Louis Riverfront Master Plan: Experience the nature and presence of the river, Create new Connections, Develop New Spaces and Complement the City. Through site models, plans, sections and montages, Balmori Associates developed four schemes for the St. Louis Riverfront. During the design process, Balmori Associates participated in two public forums. Designed as an open house, the forums brought over 400 residents to evaluate each design concept. As a result, the most ambitious scheme, Terraces & Islands, was selected. This scheme’s terraced river edge, floating walkways and floating islands will allow for new inhabitation of the river in ways never seen before. The project’s completion is set to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the completion of the Gateway Arch.