Allegheny Riverfront Park
Encyclopedia
Allegheny Riverfront Park is a small municipal park along the south bank of the Allegheny River
in Downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
's Cultural District
. It is a parcel of Three Rivers Park
, the city's grand urban waterfront park along its rivers that provides a continuous green trail link between existing and future riverfront destinations.
It is sited between Ninth Street Pier and Fort Duquesne Bridge
and consists of two 4,000 foot promenades running alongside the river there, one upland and the other at river level. The lower tier opened in 1998, and the upper was completed in 2001. The Three Sisters
bridges—Roberto Clemente Bridge
, Andy Warhol Bridge
, and Rachel Carson Bridge
—each intersect with the park.
The concept of riverfront parks in downtown Pittsburgh dates at least to 1911 and a plan of the Olmsted Brothers
. The proposal was revived in the early 1990s when the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust
's District Plan called for a riverfront park to frame the Cultural District's northern boundary.
The Trust's Public Arts Advisory Committee commissioned a collaboration between artists Ann Hamilton, Michael Mercil, and landscape architect Michael Van Valkenburgh
, who is a professor of landscape architecture at the Harvard Graduate School of Design
, and his firm Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates (MVVA) to create the new park. According to Carol Brown, the head of the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust during the design and construction of the park, " The challenges of the site became the strengths of the final design of the park. Two parallel linear spaces dissected by highways, with vastly different elevations and periodic flooding, led MVVA, Hamilton, and Mercil to create an innovative, complex and highly successful design vocabulary for the park."
In 2002, Allegheny Riverfront Park received a Design Merit Award from the ASLA, and a Places/EDRA Place Design Award.
Allegheny River
The Allegheny River is a principal tributary of the Ohio River; it is located in the Eastern United States. The Allegheny River joins with the Monongahela River to form the Ohio River at the "Point" of Point State Park in Downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania...
in Downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
's Cultural District
Cultural District, Pittsburgh
The Cultural District is a fourteen-square block area in Downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA bordered by the Allegheny River on the north, Tenth Street on the east, Stanwix Street on the west, and Liberty Avenue on the south....
. It is a parcel of Three Rivers Park
Three Rivers Park
Three Rivers Park is an urban waterfront park along the Allegheny, Monongahela, and Ohio Rivers in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The park, under development since 2000, is intended to be a landmark that will join Frick Park, Schenley Park, Highland Park, Riverview Park, and Grand View Scenic Byway Park...
, the city's grand urban waterfront park along its rivers that provides a continuous green trail link between existing and future riverfront destinations.
It is sited between Ninth Street Pier and Fort Duquesne Bridge
Fort Duquesne Bridge
The Fort Duquesne Bridge is a steel tied arch bridge that spans the Allegheny River in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was colloquially referred to as "The Bridge to Nowhere"...
and consists of two 4,000 foot promenades running alongside the river there, one upland and the other at river level. The lower tier opened in 1998, and the upper was completed in 2001. The Three Sisters
Three Sisters (Pittsburgh)
A suspension bridge works by hanging a roadway from cables or chains under tension. Though a few unstiffened suspension bridges exist, a longitudinal stiffening truss or girder is usually added to prevent excessive movement of the deck. The cables pass over towers and are anchored at both ends...
bridges—Roberto Clemente Bridge
Roberto Clemente Bridge
The Roberto Clemente Bridge, also known as the Sixth Street Bridge, spans the Allegheny River in downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States....
, Andy Warhol Bridge
Andy Warhol Bridge
Andy Warhol Bridge, also known as the Seventh Street Bridge, spans the Allegheny River in Downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and is the only bridge in the United States named for a visual artist....
, and Rachel Carson Bridge
Rachel Carson Bridge
Rachel Carson Bridge, also known as the Ninth Street Bridge, spans the Allegheny River in Downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.Named for the naturalist Rachel Carson, a Pittsburgh native, it is one of three parallel bridges called The Three Sisters, the others being the Roberto Clemente Bridge and the...
—each intersect with the park.
The concept of riverfront parks in downtown Pittsburgh dates at least to 1911 and a plan of the Olmsted Brothers
Olmsted Brothers
The Olmsted Brothers company was an influential landscape design firm in the United States, formed in 1898 by stepbrothers John Charles Olmsted and Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr. .-History:...
. The proposal was revived in the early 1990s when the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust
Pittsburgh Cultural Trust
The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, a nonprofit arts organization, is a driving catalyst behind the ongoing development of the Downtown Pittsburgh Cultural District, Pittsburgh...
's District Plan called for a riverfront park to frame the Cultural District's northern boundary.
The Trust's Public Arts Advisory Committee commissioned a collaboration between artists Ann Hamilton, Michael Mercil, and landscape architect Michael Van Valkenburgh
Michael Van Valkenburgh
Michael R. Van Valkenburgh is an American landscape architect and educator. He has worked on a wide variety of projects in the United States, Canada, Korea, and France including public parks, college campuses, sculpture gardens, city courtyards, corporate landscapes, and private gardens-Early...
, who is a professor of landscape architecture at the Harvard Graduate School of Design
Harvard Graduate School of Design
The Harvard Graduate School of Design is a graduate school at Harvard University offering degrees in Architecture, Landscape Architecture, and Urban Planning and Design.-History:...
, and his firm Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates (MVVA) to create the new park. According to Carol Brown, the head of the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust during the design and construction of the park, " The challenges of the site became the strengths of the final design of the park. Two parallel linear spaces dissected by highways, with vastly different elevations and periodic flooding, led MVVA, Hamilton, and Mercil to create an innovative, complex and highly successful design vocabulary for the park."
In 2002, Allegheny Riverfront Park received a Design Merit Award from the ASLA, and a Places/EDRA Place Design Award.