2014 Design Competition
Palo Alto, California
- Click here for complete competition information and timeline. (pdf)
- For the most current information on the design competition, see addendum one.
- Please read the FAQs below.
- For questions please contact Margie O’Driscoll at paloaltobridgecompetiton@aiacc.org
Following a review session on November 1, 2014 of qualifications & statements of interest from 20 design teams for the Adobe Creek Pedestrian and Cyclist Bridge, a five member jury chose the following teams to move to Phase 2 of the design process:
- Endrestudio, OLIN, SBP and Biohabitats
- HNTB Engineering, 64North, Bionic Landscape Architecture, Ned Kahn
- Moffatt and Nichol, Steven Grover and Associates, Lutsko Associates, JIRI Strasky, Mark Thomas and Co.
The City of Palo Alto wishes to express its gratitude to all those who submitted entries.
The City of Palo Alto, California is located in the heart of Silicon Valley in northern California. Home to hundreds of technology and research based companies and Stanford University, this city of 66,000 boasts some of the nation’s most highly educated people.
Palo Alto is crossed by several creeks that flow into San Francisco Bay. Adobe Creek and Barron Creek converge near the southern boundary, Matadero Creek is a short distance from the Adobe/Barron confluence and San Francisquito Creek is Palo Alto’s northern boundary.
More people in Palo Alto choose to walk or bicycle on streets or trail systems compared to almost any other city or town of a comparable size. These activities occur despite a number of major barriers that bisect Palo Alto, including the US Highway 101 corridor that separates much of Palo Alto from its largest open space land area, the Palo Alto Baylands and San Francisco Bay Trail. The desire to create better access to this important open space land area and connect citizens with employment opportunities has led the City of Palo Alto to prioritize the funding and construction of a new, year-round bridge over Highway 101 at Adobe Creek.
Jurors
Cathy Deino Blake, ASLA, LEED AP
Cathy Deino Blake, ASLA, LEED AP, is Associate Director of the Stanford University Campus Planning and Design Office. She has over 30 years of experience, formerly as a Partner at Peter Walker and Partners and from 1995 to present as the University Landscape Architect. She manages Stanford’s landscape planning and design team, directs the campus infrastructure program budget and sets direction for campus design through specific writings, design, implementation, guidelines, and standards. Cathy was the 2011-13 chair of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) Campus Planning and Design Professional Practice Network and the Chair for the 2014 Society of College and University Planners’ (SCUP) design awards Jury. She has worked on award winning Stanford projects including the Oak Preservation Plan, the Athletics Master Plan and Development, Serra Mall and all capital projects at the University.
Steve Burrows
Steve Burrows is an Executive Vice President and the USA Director of Buildings at WSP, a leading global engineering firm. Prior to WSP, Burrows held senior positions at AECOM and Arup. He has led the engineering of projects including Apple’s new headquarters, the Beijing Olympic Stadium (Birdsnest), Stanford’s Graduate School of Business, and the Manchester Stadium. Burrows is a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE), and hosts a television program on the engineering of ancient structures.
Susan Chin, FAIA
Susan Chin, FAIA, is Executive Director of the Design Trust for Public Space, a nonprofit organization at the forefront of shaping the urban environment in New York City. Her projects include: Five Borough Farm, expanding urban agriculture in New York City; Making Midtown, creating a new bold vision for a 21st Century Garment District; and Under the Elevated, reclaiming space under bridges and rail lines to connect communities. For over 20 years she served as Assistant Commissioner for Capital Projects in the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, overseeing more than $3 billion in new construction, revitalization and public art projects. Chin was elected 2013–2014 AIA Vice President after having been AIA New York Chapter President.
Sam Lubell
Sam Lubell is the West Coast Editor of the Architect’s Newspaper and the co-curator of the recent exhibition Never Built Los Angeles. He has written five books about architecture: Never Built Los Angeles, Julius Shulman Los Angeles: The Birth of a Modern Metropolis Paris 2000+, London 2000+, and Living West. He has written for The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Magazine, New York Magazine, Architectural Record, Architect Magazine, Architectural Review, and other publications. His next project will be the book and exhibition Never Built New York.
Judith Wasserman, AIA
I have lived in Palo Alto since 1968, when I arrived with a BA in Physics from Cornell University. I ride a bicycle, I have a Masters in Architecture from UC Berkeley in 1985, and I spent 12 years on the Palo Alto Architectural Review board, before which I was on the Palo Alto Public Art Commission. I am a self-employed residential architect with 20 years of experience.
FAQs
1) How do I submit my entry?
Entries should be submitted in the following manner:
Please submit one PDF via email to: John.Montenero@cityofpaloalto.org
Also submit 10 print copies to:
John Montenero
City of Palo Alto
Purchasing and Contract Administration
250 Hamilton Avenue
Palo Alto, CA 94301
Copies should be in an 8.5 x 11 inch format (A4).
2) My team does not include an architect with a license in California, can our team submit?
During Phase 1 of the competition, entrants are required to include a licensed architect, licensed landscape architect and licensed civil engineer on the design team. Either the architect or engineer must have designed a bridge that was constructed within the last ten years.
During Phase 2, the three finalists will be required to identify team members who hold licenses in the state of California in the fields of architecture, landscape architecture, civil engineering, surveying and hydrology.
3) When is the deadline for comments and questions?
Please submit your comments and questions in writing to Margie O’Driscoll by Wednesday, 5pm, October 22, 2014.
4) How will entries be rated and narrowed down to three finalists?
The entries containing the qualifications and letter of intent shall be evaluated by the Jury in a public meeting.
The Jury’s evaluation of entries and selection of the top 3 design teams shall be based on the criteria noted in the competition instructions: the experience of the design team limited to 10 pages and the letter of intent limited to 4 pages.
The letter of intent should include the project approach and understanding of the design principles and guidelines, challenges and opportunities of the pedestrian and cyclist bridge.
5) Does the way you interpret and have written the team requirements mean that it would be in our best interest to adhere carefully to the Design Team Description in the brief and include a separate Lead Architect or Principal(s) from a dedicated Architectural firm on our team?
A separate lead architect is a design team requirement. This lead architect does not need to be a principal from a dedicated architectural firm.
