Finding Lost Water
SITE: Bronx, NY
YEAR: Architecture Grad - 2022 / 2023, Semester 5 / 6
UNIVERSITY: CUNY Spitzer School of Architecture
DURATION OF PROJECT: 8 months
Human infrastructure has fractured the watershed, but the system will always be a interconnected network of actors. The connections within the current system can be our downfall or solution. The neighborhoods of Norwood and Jerome Park were disconnected by the construction of a large freeway. This freeway was built on a stream that connected to a larger water system known as Tibbett's Brook. This proposal attempts to reconnect the neighborhood's by demolishing the freeway, daylighting the old stream, and creating a pedestrian greenway.
The large intersection is a part of Mosholu Pkwy which connects Van Cortlandt Park to Bronx Park; however it separates the neighborhoods of Norwood and Jerome Park. The separation is stark, but the roadway is just one actor of many in this area that is currently dominating the space.
When looking at past maps to understand how this stretch of roadway came to be, one will find that this was once a stream on top of the hill, flowing slowly downhill to the Bronx River and connection to Tibbett's Brook.
Flows of Friction
When considering this stretch of Mosholu Parkway, "finding lost water", and the statement of interconnection I made in the fall semester, I decided to take a "elemental site plan" to attempt to see the connections happening since, when looking at this space through the human eye, everything looks disconnected. The elemental site plan showcased the water that is all around us in the air, the lakes, below us, and within us. Also, Mosholu Parkway is letting off an immense amount of vehicular pollution. This way of drawing and thinking allowed for the creation of the elemental matrix to help inform what design intervention could take place here to balance out that matrix.
Mosholu Pedestrian Parkway
1. RECONNECTION TO WATER
3. DECREASE AMOUNT OF VEHICULAR TRAFFIC
2. RESTITCH NEIGHBORHOOD
4. CREATION OF A PEDESTRIAN FOCUSED PARKWAY
The Mosholu Pedestrian Parkway will act as a connection piece to the neighborhood, prioritizing re-balancing the space that was once dominated by vehicular traffic. The centerpiece of the Parkway will be the daylight stream of School Brook, the old waterway that was here prior to roadway construction. Program such as a marketplace, playgrounds, art spaces, gardens, water activities, an amphitheater, and wetlands are scattered around the forested Parkway.
MOSHOLU PEDESTRIAN PARKWAY PLAN
MOSHOLU PEDESTRIAN PARKWAY PHASING PLAN
NORTH OF JEROME AVE BRIDGE MOSHOLU PEDESTRIAN PARKWAY
The north of Jerome Avenue Bridge section of the Mosholu Pedestrian Parkway is right below Van Cortlandt park. Schools, a nursing home, and the James Baldwin Outdoor Learning Center are located around this portion of the Parkway. The north section of the Parkway is where a marketplace, sporting courts, and play areas will be located due to the existing context and program around this area. The daylight stream, following the old maps of it's flow pattern during from the late 1800s, will pool in the area that once was the large intersection of Mosholu Parkway, West Gun Hill Road, Sedgwick Avenue, and Dickinson Avenue. The water will then flow downhill due to the existing topography to the Bronx River.
Section 1
Section 2
SOUTH OF JEROME AVE BRIDGE MOSHOLU PEDESTRIAN PARKWAY
The south of Jerome Avenue Bridge section of Mosholu Pedestrian Parkway will have a east / west connection piece. The east walkway will lead to Jerome Park Reservoir. The west walkway will lead to the Williamsburg Oval, which was once the reservoir before Jerome Park was built. The pathway on the east side of this section of the Parkway will connect to an existing park space. The south section of the Parkway will include art spaces, an amphitheater, gardens, and resting spaces within the densely forested areas. The daylight stream will flow underneath the Jerome Avenue Bridge as it continues flowing downhill to the Bronx River. The program and pathways will weave around the stream.
Section 3
Section 4
Flows of Harmony
The Mosholu Pedestrian Parkway designs were informed by balancing out the elemental matrix of this space. Decreasing road emissions, increasing phosphorus with the use of phytoremediation to help remove pollutants in the soil from the long history of vehicular traffic on this site, and increasing water creates a dramatic shift in the landscape. This shift can be seen within the elemental site plan and section, where the outcome of the balancing of the elemental matrix is a safer and healthier environment. The hope is that this way of elemental drawing and thinking can begin to pinpoint problematic areas around the city, and help inform what design intervention could be created to balance out the matrix.
