Grand Boulevard Bridge Redux

Grand Boulevard Bridge Redux suggests that we should slow down to fully experience the places that we inhabit. By tapping into the pragmatic languages of form and function within the site, the architect and artist composed frameworks that allow unexpected relationships to reveal themselves in casual encounters.

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In 2009, the architect worked with public and private entities to design and build a major artwork integrated into four bridges spanning I-670 in downtown Kansas City. Comprised of Main Street, Baltimore, Wyandotte and Grand Boulevard bridges, this became known as Pedestrian Strands. In May 2016, after structural cracks were discovered in the Grand Street bridge, the architect was commissioned to re-design this bridge. Once again architect and artist responded to the site, reflecting on changes to the environment since the original commission. Increased traffic and activity required a deeper focus on the acoustical experience of the bridge. Being a Boulevard demanded a higher level of attention to lighting and finishes, and the project consciously set a new standard for integrated public art within infrastructure for Kansas City’s Parks and Boulevards system. This project is part of a larger philosophy called “incremental urbanism” — an attempt to keep pace with, respond to, and provoke contemplation within the evolution of the urban environment.
  • 2016
  • Architect, Fabricator
  • Kansas City, MO
  • 11,277 SF

Client

  • City of KCMO

Eldo Team

  • David Dowell
  • Chris Burk
  • Nick Kratz
  • Brent Higgins

Artist

  • James Woodfill

Collaborators

  • Contractor: Collins + Hermann Inc
  • Structural Engineer: Genesis Structures
  • Electrical Engineer: Lankford / Fendler Associates

Photography by

  • Mike Sinclair

Related

Main Street Bridge Redux
Landscaped Edge
Broadway Overpass
20th Street Streetscape