Project Would Enhance, Improve Access to Mon Wharf
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
17 March 2012
By Rachel Weaver
A design team is working to turn pedestrian access to the Mon
Wharf into a work of art as well as to enhance the riverfront it
abuts.
Riverlife and Point Park University on Friday revealed concepts
for an unusual portal, consisting of cables, spines and an LED
beacon, that would begin at the Wood Street and Fort Pitt
Boulevard access to the wharf. It would lead to the Monongahela
River shore, where a floating pier would provide a stage for
performance as well as seating for viewing the river and water
traffic.
The construction would visually smooth and improve what is now a
disjointed, grungy pedestrian route to the park along the wharf.
"The entrance is separated by a harsh urban edge," said Lisa
Schroeder, president of Riverlife, a public-private partnership
that advocates for redevelopment of Pittsburgh's riverfronts.
Solving the problem of river accessibility is "difficult, and
nowhere more so than in this location."
"Students wanted very nice access to the river," added Point Park
President Paul Hennigan.
The project is an extension of the school's Academic Village
Initiative, which has included increased housing and a new urban
park on campus close to the wharf.
Point Park and Riverlife officials are exploring fundraising for
the project, expected to cost between $1 million and $1.5 million.
New York City-based artist Nobuho Nagasawa partnered with local
landscape architecture firm LaQuatra Bonci Associates on the
design.
Nagasawa, who has been commissioned for more than 20 public
art/architecture projects, called this one of the most
challenging.
"The destination is the water, but in order to get there you have
to go down into an area that's not even open," she said. "The
space is used by people who want to park there, and you can't take
that away."
Access to the wharf is limited by roadway and highway ramps. In
the new plan, pedestrian and traffic islands on Fort Pitt
Boulevard would be consolidated to create a larger and safer
stopping place for pedestrians headed to the river, said Fred
Bonci of LaQuatra Bonci Associates of South Side, architects for
the project.
A 40-foot-tall, mast-and-cable structure, topped with a blue LED
beacon, would be built over the stairway at the traffic island. As
people descend the stairs, they will encounter a structure
suspended by cables from Parkway support beams that will be
"reminiscent of the bones of a whale and the ribs and keel of a
long boat," Nagasawa said. After walking under that, pedestrians
will be able to make their way to the floating pier.
Nagasawa spent time talking to Pittsburghers, including Point Park
students, as well as kayaking the Mon River for inspiration.
Bonci said construction could take six months to a year and will
not interfere with pedestrian access to the wharf.
Rachel Weaver can be reached at rweaver@tribweb.com or
412-320-7948.