COMPREHENSIVE VISION PLAN
56 Comprehensive Plan
Comprehensive Plan
VISION PLAN INTENTIONS Analysis of the existing conditions of the green and civic spaces in the downtown area and a study of existing urban development plans, identified a need to create a comprehensive vision plan which integrates all of these elements into cohesive system of related and complementary parts. The comprehensive vision plan proposes a three part system of Anchor Parks, Corridors, and Infill Parks. These three interrelated systems will provide Kansas City with a cohesive system of connected green and civic space which currently does not exist. The Anchor Parks, Corridors, and Infill Parks will offer an implementable solution to the fragmentation of Kessler’s original park system and improve the connectivity of the entire downtown. This system will enhance the existing parks and capitalize on the potential found in Kansas City’s natural features and the underutilized space within downtown.
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58 Comprehensive Plan
MAIN
STREET
RD LEVA ND BOU GRA
EET
STR
MAIN
STREET
RD LEVA ND BOU GRA
MAIN
LEVARD ND BOU GRA
THE PASEO
12TH STREET
18TH STREET
31ST STREET
ANCHOR PARKS
CORRIDORS
INFILL PARKS
Anchor Parks are iconic parks which have permanence and embody the identity of Kansas City. Corridors are a network of multi-modal transportation routes which act as linear public space. Infill Parks are temporary hybrid parks which link the Anchor Parks and Corridors, while improving the walkability and livability. Together, these three distinct elements form a cohesive system which will create significant public space within the Greater Downtown Area.
Comprehensive Plan
ST MAIN D GRAN
REET
D
EVAR
BOUL
ANCHOR PARKS CORRIDORS
INFILL PARKS
59
60
Research + Analysis
Comprehensive Plan
ANCHOR PARkS Anchor Parks are iconic parks that embody the identity of Kansas City. They build on the existing parks which are essential elements in the character of Kansas City. Anchor Parks have permanence and the potential to connect the city to its place through its history, topography and natural features. These parks primarily serve the city, but can also function as neighborhood parks or serve the region as a whole. Enhancing the system of Anchor Parks will recognize their significance and further articulate their presence and mutual systemic relationships. As the first part of the threelayered system, these parks anchor the system of Corridors which connect people and destinations within the city and are linked together by the system of Infill Parks.
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62 Comprehensive Plan
BERKLEY RIVERFRONT PARK
D GRAN D EVAR
ET
STRE
BOUL
MAIN
WEST TERRACE PARK
THE PARADE PARK
RAIL PARK (PROPOSED)
PENN VALLEY PARK
Comprehensive Plan
THE PARAdE PARk RESIDENTIAL
INTERSTATE-670 INTERSTATE-670 SMALL BUSINESSES
EAST TRUMAN ROAD
PASEO
EAST TRUMAN ROAD
CAREER TECHNICAL CENTER
E TRUMAN
RESIDENTIAL COMMUNITY CENTER
PUBLIC LIBRARY
AMERICAN JAZZ MUSEUM NEGRO LEAGUES
18TH STREET
BASEBALL MUSEUM
18TH STREET
PROGRAMMING Tree Line Transitional Green Space Entry Point Recreation Parking Existing Structure
WOODLAND AVENUE
ULEV ARD O BO
CHARACTER
VINE STREET
PASE
WOODLAND AVENUE
VINE STREET
PASE
O BO
ULEV ARD
MERCHANT SERVICES GEM THEATER
BUSINESS DISTRICT
LINCOLN HIGH SCHOOL
ACCESS
Founded in 1900, The Parade Park was meant to be “a central point in provisions for recreation and amusements.” Today, the 21-acre park is home to a ball diamond, playground, tennis courts, .30-mile asphalt track, and a community and fitness center. As one of Kansas City’s most successful and well-used parks, the park programming and amenities will remain with enhancement.
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PROGRAMMING
Tree Line Entry Point
Transitional Green Space Recreation
Sustainable Features View Overlook
Existing Structure Development 31ST STREET
CHARACTER PENN VALLEY DR
PENNSYLVANIA AVE
PENNSYLVANIA AVE
T I
M
M
U
S
MAIN
P
N EN
DR
IV
E
SUMMIT STREET
SUMMIT STREET
E
NE
E
IVE
IV
DR
R RD
Y
LE
L VA
PIO
NN
PE
AL
ORI
MEM
IVE
DR
RD
VA
LE
OU
DB
AN
GR
27TH STREET
MAIN STREET
BRAODWAY BOULEVARD COMMERCIAL
SOUTHWEST TRAFFICWAY
MAIN STREET
BRAODWAY BOULEVARD
SOUTHWEST TRAFFICWAY
VA RD
GR AN DB OU LE
COMMERCIAL
E-35
INTERSTAT
WEST PENNWAY STREET
E-35
INTERSTAT
64 Research + Analysis
EAST PERSHING ROAD
27TH STREET
RESIDENTIAL
31ST STREET
ACCESS
Comprehensive Plan
PENN VALLEY PARk Found to be a historic and “charming” area by the 1893 Report of the Park and Boulevard Commissioners, Penn Valley Park was created in the heart of Kansas City in the early 1900s. Today, the 176-acre park contains an off-leash dog GR AN DB OU LE VA RD
MEM ORI AL IVE DR
E IV DR
EY LL VA
ER NE PIO
NN PE NN PE
E IV DR
SUMMIT STREET
park, skate park, tennis courts, playground, picnic shelter, and ball diamonds. Located within the northern half of Penn Valley Park, is the 47-acre Memorial Hill, home of Liberty Memorial and The National World War 1 Museum. In order
DR IVE
INTERSTAT E-35
WEST PENNWAY STREET
EAST PERSHING ROAD
27TH STREET
to provide eyes on the park, development will be proposed for the South and West edges of the park. This will also alleviate some of the park’s maintenance burden. Trees will line Penn Valley Drive to block out the traffic interference
PENNSYLVANIA AVE
and the low-lying area in the middle of the park will be devoted to sustainable
VIEWS
infrastructure.
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Research + Analysis
INTERSTATE-70
7TH STREET
7TH STREET
INTE RSTA TE-3
INTE RSTA TE-3
5
5
INTERSTATE-70
10TH STREET
10TH STREET
KESSLER: 1893 PLAN
12TH STREET
12th STREET
BEAR
BEAR
DSLE
DSLE
Y RO
Y RO
AD
AD
12TH STREET
BROADWAY STREET
SUMMIT STREET
17TH STREET
ST
ST
PE
PE
NN
WAY NN
WAY
STR
EE
EE STR
T
T
17TH STREET
INTERSTATE-35
INTERSTATE-670
BROADWAY STREET
INTERSTATE-35
SUMMIT STREET
INTERSTATE-670
WE
WE
66
PROGRAMMING
CHARACTER
Tree Line
Civic Space
Transitional Green Space
Entry Point
Sustainable Features
Recreation
View Overlook
Parking
ACCESS
Comprehensive Plan
WEST TERRACE PARk Comprised of Mulkey Square and INTERSTATE-70
INTERSTATE-70
Jarboe Park, West Terrace Park is 7TH STREET
7TH STREET
The 31-acre park stretches along the
INTER
INTE RSTA TE-3
STATE-3
5
5
another of Kessler’s original parks. 10TH STREET
10TH STREET
West Bluffs, overlooking the Missouri 1
and Kansas Rivers. As this is one of
1
12TH STREET
12TH STREET 1
2
2 2 2
BEAR
BEAR
DSLE
DSLE
Y RO
Y RO
AD
the park’s major assets, the repro-
AD
2
3 3
gramming of West Terrace will capi-
4 5
INTERSTATE-670
INTERSTATE-670
talize on these views. The connection
INTERSTATE-670
6 7 7
17TH STREET
NN PE ST WE
WE
ST
PE
NN
WAY
WAY
EE STR
EE STR
T
T
17TH STREET
to help create a cohesive system of green space. VIEWS
BROADWAY STREET
9
SUMMIT STREET
5
ATE-35 INTERST
front Heritage Trail will be enhanced
BROADWAY STREET
SUMMIT STREET
between the parks and to the River-
INTERSTATE-35
8
OWNERSHIP
67
Research + Analysis
AIL
TRAIL
TR
TRAI
TRAIL TRAIL TRAIL TRAIL TRAIL TRAIL TRAIL TRAIL TRAIL TRAIL
AIL
TR
OO DW ALL
L FL TR AIL
OO DW AL L
FL
AIL
TR
L
DW AL
OO
FL
TR A IL FL L
OO DW AL
AIL
TRAIL
TR
AIL
TR
AIL TR
L FLO ODWA
AIL
TRAI
TR
L
AIL TR
DW AL
OO
AIL
FL AIL
AIL
Tree Line Transitional Green Space Sustainable Features Entry Point View Overlook Development Existing Structure
AIL
AIL TR
AIL
CHARACTER
FR
RIV
HWY 169
G ITA
ER
TH
ON
FR
ET
RE
T ST
ON
FR
RIV
THIRD
STREET
ET
EAST
LOTTE
STRE
TR
BROADWAY
AIL
G ITA
TR
D
T HE
ON
FR
RIV
CHAR
RIVER
G ITA
ER
TH
ON
FR
D BLV
AIL E TR
HERITAG
AIL
RIV
ON
GRAN
RIVER FRONT
HER
FR
ER
FLOO
RITA
TRAIL
T ON
E TR
GE
T HE
ITA
ER
TH
ON
FR
ER
RIV
E TR
AIL
D
OO
FL
Civic Space
AIL
TR
TR
TR
ER
TH
L
D WALL TRAIL
AIL
E TR
ON
FR
ER
RIV
G ITA
ER
TH
AIL
TR GE
ER
AL DW
FLOO
TR
TR
TR
E TR
E
PROGRAMMING
AIL
AIL
AIL
TR
AIL
TR
G ITA
ER
ER
RITAG E
AIL
AIL
AIL
TR
TR
TR
TR
AIL
TRAIL TRAIL TR
AIL
L TR
WAL AIL
FRON
AIL
AIL
AIL
TR
TR
TR
TR
TR
LL TRAIL FLOOD
W AL
L TR
RIVER
AIL
AIL
TR
AIL
TR
AIL
TR
AIL
AIL
TRAIL
68
BERKLEY PARK & REDI
ACCESS
Comprehensive Plan
BERkLEY RIVERfRONT PARk Owned by the Port Authority of Kansas City, Richard L. Berkley Riverfront Park was opened to the Public in March of 1999. The 17-acre park located along the Missouri River between the Kit Bond HWY 9
Bridge and Heart of America Bridge, features a FRONT
small natural amphitheater and mile-long esplanade which ties into the Riverfront Heritage Trail. The programming for Berkley Riverfront Park will GRAND
align with the Riverfront Development Plan, by enRIGHT-OF-WAY
couraging mixed-use development in the empty lots to the south of the current park. The park’s connections to the trail system will be enhanced and sustainable infrastructure will be implemented.
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70 Comprehensive Plan
Comprehensive Plan
RAIL PARk (PROPOSEd) The proposed Rail Park is the only Anchor Park which does not currently exist as a park in Kansas City. Due to its location, character, and underutilized conditions, the site has the potential to become a significant public space within the downtown. The Rail Park site is currently a string of surface parking lots abutting the railroad. The site begins on the east side with a parking garage between Central and Wyandotte and extends behind the Freight House and under the Main Street Bridge. The park then continues underneath Grand Boulevard between existing lofts and encompasses a vast amount of surface parking lots until terminating at Charlotte Street. This site was once rich with industrial activity but has become undefined and lost its connection to its place. Although the area still retains its industrial character, it now serves as wasted in-between space. The Rail Park site would serve the city better as an infrastructural park which reconnects Crown Center to the Crossroads and the downtown Loop, encourages growth and investment in the area, and mitigates stress on the city sewer system by utilizing water management strategies through existing infrastructural elements.
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72
HOLMES STREET
OAK STREET
GRAND BOULEVARD
MAIN STREET
BROADWAY STREET
Research + Analysis
19TH STREET
D
R VA LE
U
T
ES
BO
HW
UT
MAIN
STATE-3
5
GRAND
SO
W
PE
NN
WAY
INTER
22ND STREET
EAST PERSHING ROAD
PROGRAMMING Transitional Green Space Sustainable Features Entry Point Recreation Parking
CHARACTER
ACCESS
Comprehensive Plan
HOLMES STREET
OAK STREET
GRAND BOULEVARD
MAIN STREET
BROADWAY STREET
RAIL PARk (PROPOSEd) 19TH STREET
H
D
AR EV
O
UL
L
T
M
ES
BO
E S
23
20
19
OAK
5 STATE-3
1
1
22ND STREET
31 1
8
32 6 6
33 6 4
9
9
14
5 10
6 2 2
11
6
12
7 2 2
6
6 6
1
EAST PERSHING ROAD 12
VIEWS
OWNERSHIP
21
17
31
34 33
INTER
GRAND
McGEE
16
18 18
30
22
16
12 12 12
35
21
16
39 38
38 37
3
28
27
24
36
15
13
29
15
26 25
HW
UT
SO
73
74
Research + Analysis
Comprehensive Plan
CORRIdORS As one of the three elements of the vision plan, Corridors use linear public space as multi-modal transportation routes. The network of Corridors repurpose the existing urban street grid, allocating routes that prioritize nonmotorized transportation. Public and underutilized land adjacent to the circulation spine is designed to enhance urban fabric and add pedestrian amenities. These adjacent destination spaces support the vitality of the corridor, spurring investment and connecting districts. District fragmentation, as a result of the highways, low population density, and underutilized land, has exacerbated socio-economic and cultural differences. To address the fragmented parks and boulevards system, Corridors seek to revive the current park system for pedestrian and
The corridor approach to public space uses streets to establish a dialogue between districts. The negative or incyclists.
significant relationship between parks and walking for transportation exposes the dissonance between the built environment and societal values. 13
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76
Research + Analysis
HARLEM RIVERMARKET
WEST BOTTOMS
THE LOOP
COLUMBUS PARK
PASEO WEST
CROSSROADS 18TH & VINE
WESTSIDE
UNION HILL
BEACON HILL
Comprehensive Plan
dOWNTOWN dISTRICTS To address the lack of park use and programming, Downtown Kansas City was divided into the established districts in order to understand the local context surrounding the parks. In addition, the districts were analyzed using various factors to gain an understanding before selecting the Corridors.
AGE DEMOGRAPHICS
RACE DEMOGRAPHICS
The district analysis provided strategies for each district. Factors such as age, race, population, employment, schools, property values, and recent investment projects of the Downtown Council provided an understanding of the needs of each district. The analysis found each district is culturally and demographically unique, district fragmentation continues to exacerbate socioeconomic and cultural differences, and current public space is separated from commercial areas. The analysis provided the foundation to reinvest in the disinvested and fragmented districts through linear parks. The use of the right-of-way as parks will address the historic, multi-generational disinvestment within the districts. The linear parks, or “Corridors�, will connect districts and provide parkland adjacent to commercial areas.
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78 Comprehensive Plan 18TH & VINE COMMERCIAL
VEGETATION
AGE DEMOGRAPHICS
RACE DEMOGRAPHICS
BEACON HILL
COLUMBUS PARK
CROSSROADS
Comprehensive Plan
THE LOOP
PASEO WEST
RIVERMARKET
UNION HILL
WEST BOTTOMS
WESTSIDE
79
80
Research + Analysis
Research + Analysis
81
82 Comprehensive Plan
COMMERCIAL NODES
COMMERCIAL + RESIDENTIAL NODES
RESIDENTIAL NODES
Comprehensive Plan
district nodes
The network of Corridors connects already established district nodes through pedestrian friendly routes and provides public amenities in adjacent support spaces.
ABSTRACT COMMERCIAL + RESIDENTIAL NODES
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84 Comprehensive Plan
The map at left shows the current fragmentation surrounding the proposed Corridors. Lighter areas are pedestrian barriers, while darker are strong commercial areas. Corridors pass through both in order to lessen existing barriers.
“The obvious remedies for boundary-making, some of these remedies simple, others technologically advanced. The simple solution is pedestrianization...� 14
Comprehensive Plan
Framework oF connections Reconnection would provide pedestrian accessibility to diverse residential areas while connecting commercial nodes. Communication between various downtown locations would break boundaries once established by highway systems and residential segregation. The network of Corridors will improve the pedestrian and cycling environment to encourage active transportation. Active transportation “includes any method of travel that is human-powered, but most commonly refers to walking and bicycling.”15 To do this, public space must address the mobility and accessibility for both pedestrians and cyclists. Mobility is the “ability to move between different activity [or amenity] locations.”16 Adapting public space to improve movement will encourage pedestrian mobility and cycling along the corridor. Accessibility is the “number of opportunities or activity [or amenity] locations within a certain distance.”17 Public space also adds pedestrian and cycling amenities to accommodate the existing built and natural environment. Like boulevards, Corridors use a transportation corridor to encourage future investment. Similar to Kessler’s concept for boulevards as a “passage,”18 Corridors move people between commercial areas with supporting destinations along the way.
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86 Comprehensive Plan
FIGURE GROUND
STREET WIDTH
TRAFFIC FREQUENCY
Comprehensive Plan
The map on the far left shows the figure ground surround each selectselect ed corridor. The middle map reveals the street widths. The right map on the left page show traffic frequency within the downtown area. The map to the right shows topography along corridor routes, while the sections cut through each route longitudilongitudi nally.
EIGHTEENTH STREET
SOUTHWEST BOULEVARD
BEARDSLEY-THIRD STREET
TWELFTH STREET
PASEO BOULEVARD
site selection
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88 Comprehensive Plan
TRAILS + NETWORK OF CORRIDORS
TRAFFIC STOPS + NETWORK OF CORRIDORS
In the visioning phase, streets were selected using various factors, including: grade changes, adjacent land use, available intervention space, street continuity, proximity to commercial areas, accessibility and safety for cyclists through the NACTO Urban Bikeway Design Guide, ability to spur investment, street widths, and street design through the Boulevards & Parkway Standards of Kansas City, Missouri. Catalytic projects were a major factor in the final selection of the Corridors.
Comprehensive Plan
selected corridors
The seven selected Corridors are 12th Street, 18th Street, Beardsley / 3rd Street, Charlotte, Southwest BouleBoule vard, 31st Street, and The Paseo. First Priority Second Priority Third Priority
89
Comprehensive Plan
adjacent spaces
The map to the left indicates land use adjacent to the corridor, based on site visits. The map to the right combines all available underutilized land, public, and parkland along each corridor, revealing possible design intervention locations. Park Negotiable Lot Commercial Destination Civic Residential Commercial Industrial Parking Garage
POTENTIAL DESTINATION SPACES
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92 Comprehensive Plan
PASEO BOULEVARD
18TH + VINE JAZZ DISTRICT
18TH STREET
To align with the GDAP goals, the Corridors aim to create a walkable downtown, help double the population, help increase employment, connect the culturally-rich districts, and use active transportation as a sustainable travel option. Building bike infrastructure provides citizens a choice of how to move within the city. To ensure that the physical environment is utilized, a city must have policies in place that encourage alternative transportation use.
Comprehensive Plan
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94
Research + Analysis
Comprehensive Plan
inFill parks Hybrid infill parks and public spaces can be envisioned by rethinking the use of parking lots. These infill spaces will provide residents and employees of downtown with needed green space. Each infill intervention will re-purpose under-utilized surface lots so they serve the city on many levels, one of which is the public realm. The intention behind each Infill Park is to rethink the current situation of the city and the public realm, and to create a new urban space prototype including the possibility of public spaces. While the public realm should function as a meaningful space where people gather, it should also provide those fundamental systems that benefit the health of the environment and the health of the city’s inhabitants. Understanding that long term implementation will depend on short term initiatives to change public perceptions, Infill Parks will aim to examine existing infrastructural aspects and programmatic functions to see how they can be retrofitted to serve the public realm. The idea of new hybrid spaces will look at creating an urban typology within the city that provides potential public space while simultaneously providing important infrastructural elements and programmatic functions the city still requires.
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96 Comprehensive Plan
A modified five-minute walking radius, which accounts for the city’s dramatic topography, ensured the even dispersal of infill sites throughout the FIVE MINUTE WALKING GRID
downtown.
Comprehensive Plan
selection process Infill Parks will serve as interstitial connectors to major parks bordering the city’s perimeter and to major corridors that run through the city’s core. To select what constitutes an Infill Park, the physical relationship of underutilized surface lots were compared with adjacent urban population uses. This process identified which lots had the best potential to become usable public space. The three primary population land uses considered in the selection process were where people live, where people work, and where people go for recreation in the Greater Downtown Area. By overlaying these three maps on top of one another, several lots were illustrated that had strong adjacent relationships to where people are in the downtown area; therefore, also revealing the areas with the highest need for public space. A five-minute walking grid was modified to account for Kansas CIty’s dramatic topography. The walking grid was used to compare the walkable relationship between the lots identified in the population overlay process. Using the walking radius helped ensure an even dispersal of interstitial green and public spaces that were identified in the overall Infill Park network throughout downtown.
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98 Comprehensive Plan
RESIDENTIAL OVERLAY
BUSINESS OVERLAY
Comprehensive Plan
COMMERCIAL OVERLAY
POPULATION USE + PARKING LOT OVERLAY
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100 Comprehensive Plan
CONNECTION
VOID
EXISTING
UNIQUE
Each selected lot needed to meet a standard set of physical attributes to qualify as a potential Infill Park. The lots needed to be able to connect certain parts of the city, while currently existing as under-utilized lots. The majority of the spaces identified in the overlay process were void surface lots with unique surrounding context and characteristics.
2 1 3 6
4
5 7 8 10
11
12
13
1. City Market Park 2. Columbus Park 3. I-70 4. 9th + Wyandotte St. 5. 8th + Oak St. 6. 9th + Washington St. 7. Ilus W. Davis Park 8. 10th + Cherry St. 9. Kansas City Plaza 10. Barney Allis Plaza 11. 12th + Walnut St. 12. 12th + Locust St. 13. 14th + Wyandotte St. 14. 17th + Grand Blvd. 15. PAC Parking Green Roof 16. 18th + Broadway Blvd. 17. 18th + Cherry St. 18. 19th + Main St. 19. 21st + Wyandotte St.
15 16 19
SELECTED INFILL SITES
14 18
17
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102 Comprehensive Plan
ENERGY CONSERVATION
STORMWATER MANAGEMENT
Energy Conservation
Infill Park
Solar Power Generation
Water Capture + Retention
Wind Power Generation
Water Filtration
Infill Parks will be defined by the use of sustainable features. To determine the significant sustainable elements needed for each park, a study of each Infill Park was done to identify what the individual parks could contain. Stormwater management will be a design issue for a majority of the city’s infill, so once each site was clearly identified for a particular sustainable use it was overlaid with the city’s sewer system.
Research + Analysis
potential inFill parks
A key feature of the Infill Parks is their connectivity, which will promote walkability within the downtown. The map at right shows early potential infill sites and the direct route between them.
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104
Research + Analysis
Research + Analysis
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106 Comprehensive Plan
9TH ST. + 9TH ST. + WASHINGTON ST. WYANDOTTE ST.
10TH ST. + CHERRY ST.
17TH ST. + GRAND BLVD.
18TH ST.+ CHERRY ST.
CHERRY
CURRENT OCCUPANCY
14TH ST. + WYANDOTTE ST.
14TH
MAIN
BALTIMORE
10TH
OWNERSHIP 23 13 12 12
24 23 23 22 22
02 01
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27
25
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04 03 03
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LAND USE
ZONING
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36 37 38 39 40 39 41
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12 27
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107
Comprehensive Plan
potential parks analYsis ADMIRAL 21ST ST. + WYANDOTTE ST. PLAZA
BARNEY ALLIS PLAZA
INTERSTATE 70 OVERPASS
KANSAS CITY PLAZA
WYANDOTTE
18TH ST. + MAIN ST.
I-70
Barney Allis
20TH
9TH
12TH
8TH I-70 D
LV
TB
WES
UTH
SO
PASEO
GRAND
WALNUT
DELAWARE
OAK
WYANDOTTE
WYANDOTTE
11TH
58
05 04
06
09
01
02
01
06 10
40
09 12
35
44
41 36
11
13 15
20 17
54
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53
71
52
41 09 29
45
64
39 21
33 34 32
45
45 45
09 38 28
37 31 30
47 47 50
48
11
67 68 70
07
04
06
18 18
18 17 20 232221 18 26 24
02
03
18 18 18
03 03 03
04
18 18
39 38 37 36
32
34
09
04 04
07
04 03 02 02 06 05
09
12
04 13
13 14
11
51
01
32 19
27 73
28
18
01
28
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30 31
29
27 18 15
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10 10
04 06
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48
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30
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12
50 49
26
08
29 01
50
47
45
26
10 15
25
03
04
01
08
33
11
25 03
19
11
17 16
07
09 10 05
08
19
11
11
73 49 50
11
66
74
42 51 46
12 11
15
16 14
14
14
11 54
11
13
63
09
42
40 40
65
61 62 63
55
43 42
01
19
08
07
57 56 53
58
18
18
60 60
58
01. Tower Properties Company 02. The Gas Station Corporation 03. Delofts LLC 04. 300 Delaware Investments 05. Mallin Gibson Family 06. All Nations Flag Com Inc 07. Crawford Architects LLC 08. 311 Delaware LLC 09. Richards & Canover Loft LLC
51
46 25 53
17 18
03
23 23
15 15
04 23 24 19 23 20 22 21 37
23 35 34
40
30 31 33
38
41
41
39 32 15 38 38
36
18 17
17
02 22
23
11
24 01
59 01
01
15
01
01
59 59
15 16
61 60 59
53 53 53
58
52 53
53 57 54 54 55 56
11. Colonial Patterns Inc 20 12. EDC Loans 13. River View Central LLC 14. Noor Mohammad 15. City of Kansas City 19 16. Old Town Partners III19LP 17. Brickhouse Properties 18. WNB Properties 19. Juul Florence 18 20. Juul Marcella
22 18
22. Zarda Helen 13 23. Slaughter Donna 17 24. Cromwell Lofts 25. City Diner Real Estate LLC 13 26. Pisciotta John 14 27. W & S Investors 15 28. Luchen Marurice 29. Belger Realty Co Inc 15 30. Phillips Humar Building 31. Smith Yachiyo 03 32. Kay See Dental 33. CHKR LLC 34. Winslow Susan 10 35. Calc LLC 36. Boatsman First National Bank 37. Land Trust of Jackson County 08 38. Sam Properties LLC 52. Sacco Joseph 39. 523 Grand Properties LP 53. JC40. Auto Park Inc Nigro Maxine 54. SSHSBC LLC 41. Bridgeworks Home LLC 55. 404 LLC & Supply Corp07 06 42.Building Rudd Clutch 43. Orr Dwight Wayne 57. Zeinfeld Seymour 44. Unique City Investments LLC 58. 220 LLC 45.Admiral Frandsen Peter 59. WU 46.Building WilliamsInvestors Billie 60. Danguard 47. DefeoInc Nicholas 61. Bunch HE 48. Mandacina Joseph 49. Heartland Food Investment 50. 4th & Locust LLC 51. Wendl Donald
21
23 02
30
04
32 31
05
18
24
05 25 26 25 28 24
27
12 11 03 03
03 09 08
03
01
29
108 Comprehensive Plan
Comprehensive Plan
MULTI-LEVEL DOG PARK + CIVIC SPACE
MULTI-FUNCTIONAL CIVIC SPACE
The park programming for each infill space will be determined according to the surrounding population uses and context. Infrastructural functions will be present in each site. Sustainable design solutions will be applicable to all sites, however designs will be retrofitted to best suite each space, aesthetically and functionally. Some of these features will include bioswales, tree canopies, solar collection, and stormwater collection.
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110 Comprehensive Plan
Comprehensive Plan
connecting the citY In the United States, there are at least 105 million and up to 2 billion parking spaces, a third of which are in surface parking lots.19 In almost every city, zoning and building codes require a certain percentage or number of parking stalls per building. Much of the time, a large amount of that required space is unoccupied, which creates wasteful space and encourages an individual mind-set counteractive to the collective whole. As stated by Lewis Mumford half a century ago, “The right to have access to every building in the city by private motorcar in an age when everyone possesses such a vehicle is the right to destroy the city.�20 Cities have become weaker due to this supposed right. The relationship of land to the built environment has become undefined, with a large percentage of available space serving the people as nothing but a convenient storage space for automobiles. Our urban environments have become littered with waste landscape. Waste landscape can be viewed in different ways: as actual waste, such as municipal solid waste or sewage, as wasted places, like abandoned or contaminated sites, or wasteful places, serving as surface parking lots or topographically undesirable open space.21 These wasted spaces are not occupiable, but instead function as barriers that fragment cities. They are primarily places that people overlook, passing through without stopping to recognize the potential of the place.
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112 Comprehensive Plan
However, they must become more than that to unite the urban fabric and make today’s cities stronger. “Adaptively reusing this waste landscape figures to be one of the twenty-first century’s great infrastructural challenges as these sites are potentially transformable into new productive uses such as permanent open landscapes or infill developments.”22 A public piece of land that only serves one purpose or audience should not be the standard anymore while attempting to reconstruct unified cities. Open urban sites should have a multifunctional use. By increasing the value of the wasted space within the urban fabric, we can begin to transform the city into a prosperous, connected whole. “Future infill and growth depend on salvaging and reimagining the collective body of in-between landscapes.”23 Rather than continue with the haphazard development method currently employed in America, there should be an evaluation of how land use could be made stronger to create a denser city. Waste landscapes within the urban environment, specifically surface parking lots, should be transformed into multifunctional public spaces to connect the city to its place and promote investment and development. “Planned with greater intent, parking lots could actually become significant public spaces, contributing as much to their communities as great boulevards, parks or plazas.”24 Leaving surface parking as it exists today, singularly used, abundant, and cheap, will have negative impacts on the societal minds of America. It allows for each person to be comfortable using personal vehicles on a daily basis, wasting precious land and resources, without understanding how these spaces could better our cities.
Comprehensive Plan
The adverse influence surface parking has on a city begs the question of how it can become an asset to the city. Wasteful lots within the urban core should be examined to understand whether parking is necessary in that area and how much land could be freed for transformative public functions. There would have to be consideration given to applicability of different functions, given the variance of population density and ecological conditions. Surface parking lots have caused havoc on the environmental systems within a city, and sustainable practices need to be integrated into these sites. “Surface parking lots… impact the region’s air and water quality, and increase stormwater runoff and the risk of flooding.”25 The Urban Heat Island effect is especially predominant in areas where surface parking is abundant, destroying the health of cities. Surface parking should be looked at as an opportunity to serve as ecologically beneficial infrastructural landscapes that serve the public. “The more significant traditional urban landscapes possess the capacity to function as important ecological vessels and pathways, as hydrological and stormwater systems, or greenway corridors that infiltrate [air and water]. These kinds of infrastructural landscapes will surely continue to be important to the overall health and well-being of urban populations.”26 Capitalizing on the opportunities to use the land in a creative way that can serve the city in multiple ways is essential. Existing lots could reclaim land for restorative landscapes, utilize solar and wind energy collection, create spaces for urban agriculture, and repurpose existing infrastructure. When designing parking, it should be standard for the designer to consider how to revitalize an area while combating the ecological damage.
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114 Research + Analysis
Research + Analysis
Americans spend more time in parking lots than most other public spaces. However, we tend not to think of them as public spaces but simply as blank pavement to park automobiles. In order to make cities stronger, the mindset of the typical American has to be shifted about parking lots. What if a parking lot was only used for automobiles on an as-necessary basis, and the majority of the time it was available for events, public showings, and other uses? The definition of an urban public space has to change to make our cities denser, and it should not be focused around pastoral strips of nature or sheets of asphalt. Redefined parking lots should serve a social function and encourage the interaction of people in public spaces. Policies should be implemented that promote food and craft markets, food trucks, art displays, public events and rallies, and other social functions in transitional lots. “For something that occupies such a vast amount of land and is used on a daily basis by so many people, the parking lot should receive more attention than it has.”27 Kansas City is one city that is struggling with the overabundance of surface parking. “Large masses of unoccupied parking are left unused for days, weeks or even months.”28 According to research done by the local organization Mid-American Regional Council, approximately 10 to 15 percent of an urban area is dedicated to parking, meaning Kansas City could have up to 126 square miles of parking.29 The majority of parking in that figure is in surface parking lots because it is cheaper to construct than garage parking.
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116 Comprehensive Plan
More parking stalls than ever are demanded by the single users, who store their vehicles in surface lots for approximately eight hours or less. That means the parking lots primarily go unused in the urban environment. Alternate transportation is also not considered a viable option in Kansas City. In 2008, only 2 percent traveled to work by transit, and the rate of walking and bicycling is half of the national average. Driving is the promoted method of transportation, and Kansas City accommodates its users.31 The urban core will continue its descent into insignificance if its wasteful fields of parking are not made less accessible and transformed into multifunctional public space. Strategically infilling and transitioning parking lots in Kansas City will help improve the quality of the downtown core. This can be achieved in a variety of methods, from updating surface parking lots to accommodate multifunctional uses, temporarily infilling parking lots as parks that could become prime for development, or reallocating large areas of surface parking to create a necessary urban park. The city has much to benefit from if this plan is implemented. In the past decade, over $6 billion has been invested in the downtown, with $1.3 billion still to come.32 The downtown has made changes to better its center, but policies that encourage surface parking continue to be a large problem. If spaces are made to have more than one function, especially in the central core, they could increase usage and help the urban center be more active. Providing parking for automobiles is a necessity in today’s society, but it should not come at the cost of the city. Instead, locating the strategic areas to transform wasteful surface parking lots in downtown could serve as an economic benefit to the city.
Comprehensive Plan
Kansas City has reinvented its downtown area over the past decade. It has recognized the problems created by the loose city fabric and is attempting to combat that. The Greater Downtown Area Plan, finalized in 2011 in collaboration with the Downtown Council, serves as a master plan to reinvent the downtown. “An economically sustainable Downtown is the end goal. In order for Downtown to work at its best, we will focus on building the numbers of people who live, work, play, attend conferences and grow creative businesses in the neighborhoods of Downtown. Population and employee density are the keys to making Downtown work at its most efficient.�33 A large portion of realizing that goal is transforming waste landscape into multifunctional, vibrant areas. Regardless of whether the urban center reaches its goals, we have to reevaluate the way we see at and design waste landscape.
117
DESIGN PROPOSITIONS
120 Design Propositions
ANCHOR PARKS
CORRIDORS
INFILL PARKS
WASHINGTON SQ. + RAIL PARK
BEARDSLEY RD.-THIRD ST.
THREE INFILL PARKS
Design Propositions
Out of the six Anchor Parks established in the comprehensive vision plan, Washington Square Park and the proposed Rail Park were selected to be developed in further detail. The Beardsley Road and Third Street Corridor represents one corridor from the comprehensive network of Corridors. And three Infill Parks were selected, 17th and Grand., 10th and Cherry St., and 10th and Wyandotte St., which each represent a different type of infill site.
121
122
Research + Analysis
Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
WaShINGTON Sq. + RaIl PaRk Out of the six Anchor Parks established in the comprehensive vision plan, the proposed Rail Park, in conjunction with the existing Washington Square Park, was selected to be developed in further detail. Each park has its own unique potential which will be reflected in its design. Together, Washington Square Park and the Rail Park will form an integral system and provide a unique urban amenity for the city. The combined park will define the southern edge of the downtown, resolve a complex situation of fragmented urban land, encourage growth and investment in the area, and add to the character of the city. Washington Square Park will be redesigned to become an iconic, multi-purpose destination space. The Rail Park will reappropriate undefined and under-utilized land and transform it into an infrastructural park.
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124 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
Rail Park Washington Square Park
WASHINGTON SQ. + RAIL PARK
DIVIDED CITY
Currently the rail lines create a major separation between Washington Square Park and rest of downtown. The Rail Park has the potential to establish the southern edge of downtown where this division occurs. By extending Washington Square Park across the rail lines and capitalizing on the proposed streetcar and Grand Boulevard improvement projects, Washington Square Park will serve as an urban node and act to reconnect Crown Center to the Crossroads and the Loop.
Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
URbaN CONCEPT Rivermarket ET
STRE
ARD ULEV D BO
GRAN
MAIN
The Loop
o Crossroads
West Side
Crown Center
RECONNECT DOWNTOWN
18th & Vine V ine
125
126 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
CONNECT TO DOWNTOWN
CONNECT TO EXISTING PUBLIC SPACES
AREAS OF INFLUENCE
Washington Square Park will serve as a transportation hub and destination space. The northern half of the park will embody a strong connection to the downtown, while the civic southern portion will flow into Pershing St. and the adjacent public functions; Crown Center, Union Station, and Liberty Memorial.
Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
PRIORITy CONNECTIONS While Washington Square Park and the Rail Park will function together to reconnect the downtown, each park will have its own distinct character and functions. The Rail Park will serve an infrastructural purpose and act as more of a local park. It will attract users from the art galleries, restaurants, and residences within the Crossroads District.
PRIORITY CONNECTIONS Restaurants + Art Galleries Civic Destinations
127
20TH ST
GRAND BLVD
STREETCAR
128 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
JACKSON CO. COMM
UTER CORRIDOR
TRIANGLE PARK
The Rail Park will capitalize on the 20th Street Plan, while Washington Square Park will serve as a transportation hub by connecting to the Amtrack Station and capitalizing on the Streetcar project and Grand BouleCONNECTION TO PROPOSED AND ONGOING PROJECTS
vard Improvement Project.
Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
Washington Square and the Rail Park will connect to the existing and proposed trails within the downtown and help to create a more solid system. By providing direct, pedestrian only routes, the park will improve the walkability of the area.
CONNECTION TO EXISTING AND PROPOSED TRAILS
129
130
Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
EXISTING CONDITIONS The majority of the proposed Rail Park site is currently under-utilized surface parking lots which produce large amounts of stormwater runoff and contribute to the urban heat island effect. As it currently exists, Washington Square Park possesses a valuable asset in its location and surrounding context. However, it lacks order and a relationship with the street and this significant context. Its design does not adequately produce a sense of place which promotes inhabitation. The current park is not providing the city the amenity which it is capable of providing. By capitalizing on its location and views, Washington Square Park has the potential to exist as the premier Anchor Park in downtown.
The photographs at left show the proposed Rail Park site and Washington Square Park as it currently exists overlaid with the proposed parkland, trails, and infill development. These provided the first sense of the extent of the park boundaries and the character the parks will possess.
EXISTING CONDITIONS
131
132 ART + DINING
RESIDENTIAL
INDUSTRIAL
SERVICES
RETAIL
EXISTING LAND USE Examining the current land uses and identifying the vacant buildings withPARKING
in the Crossroads District and areas adjacent to Washington Square Park, guided the proposal of infill development, parking strategies, and park programming.
Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
STREETS
FIGURE GROUND
An analysis of the streets and figure ground identified the prominent gaps in the urban fabric of the area. In addition to the proposed parkland, infill development will help to re-stitch this fabric and contribute to the cohesive feel of the city.
REVERSE FIGURE GROUND
133
134 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
SITE SECTIONS
Sections taken every 100’ through the site examine the relationship between Washington Square Park and the Rail Park and the combined park’s relationship to rest of downtown.
135
136 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
With the implementation of the Streetcar on Main St., the Grand Blvd. Project, and the Blue Cross/ Blue
Shield
Bikeshare
program,
Washington Square and the Rail Park will become a significant urban node. The Rail Park will connect the Crossroads to Washington Square, which will serve as a park-and-ride location and public transit hub with a direct ACCESS FROM DOWNTOWN
connection to the Downtown Loop.
Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
HOLMES ST
CHERRY ST
WALNUT ST
BALTIMORE AVE
WYANDOTTE ST
CENTRAL ST
WASHINGTON ST
aCCESS 18TH ST
VD BL
T
ES
19TH ST
HW
UT
SO
20TH ST
WEST PENNWAY ST
ND
22
ST
The major access roads into the Rail Park are Wyandotte St., Walnut St., and 20th St., as it is a local park which primarily serves the Crossroads District.
CAMPBELL ST
CHARLOTTE ST
LOCUST ST
OAK ST
GRAND BLVD
MAIN ST
BROADWAY ST
I-35
RAIL PARK ACCESS
With its major connections to down22ND ST
town, Union Station, and Crown 23RD ST
Center, Washington Square Park is accessible by the more heavily traf-
PERSHING ST 24TH ST
ficked streets; Main St., Grand Blvd., and Pershing St.
WASHINGTON SQUARE PARK ACCESS 25TH ST
137
138 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
48 36
279
708
142
9 317 140 95
721
EXISTING PARKING
The existing surface parking lots within the Rail Park boundary contain 2,442 spaces. Many of these spaces sit vacant a majority of the time. The Rail Park will transform these under-utilized parking lots into an infrastructural amenity. The consolidation of under-used parking and removal of surface parking lots will help to solidify the fragmented urON-STREET PARKING
Parking on One Side of Street
Parking on Both Sides of Street
ban fabric of the area.
Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
PaRkING + INFIll STRaTEGIES
PROPOSED INFILL
Existing parking currently in use will be reallocated to new parking garages within the proposed infill development. A walking grid was used to establish the location of the new garages. There will be garage parking within each two-block square for public use and on-street parking will remain available. Garage parking for housing will be located on the same block as the residence.
PROPOSED PARKING
139
140 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
AVAILABLE PARKLAND
CIRCULATION
Perceived space studies were completed to establish the Rail Park boundary and plan infill development that would create distinct edges and INFILL DEVELOPMENT
best solidify the urban fabric.
ART + DINING
RESIDENTIAL
INDUSTRIAL
SERVICES
RETAIL
PROPOSED LAND USE The majority of the proposed infill will be heavily mixed-use with retail on the first floor to create an active street front and residential above to provide sustained users for the park.
PARKING
142
Research + Analysis
Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
MASTER PLAN Washington Square Park and the Rail Park will create a unique and unprecedented urban space which will capitalize on its location and dramatic visual and functional connection to the downtown. The parks will serve as a meaningful and useful green and civic space which will provide public amenities and hold an identity as a place. As a destination space, the park will function as a transportation hub and the southern gateway to downtown. Washington Square Park will connect the areas to its north and south which are currently divided by the railroad lines, while the Rail Park establishes a major public East/West connection which does not currently exist. These two parks will act as one in reconnecting the entire downtown area. They will draw visitors from outside of the city but will also serve those living and working downtown. As the preeminent Anchor Park, Washington Square Park and the Rail Park will embody the identity of Kansas City.
143
144 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
PHASE ONE
PHASE TWO
PHASE THREE
Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
PROPOSED PHASING The proposed park is designed to be implemented in the separate phases: PHASE ONE: The redesign of Washington Square Park PHASE TWO: The capping of the existing Blue Cross/Blue Shield parking lot and extension of Washington Square Park over the rail lines to connect to the new Walnut Street Plaza PHASE THREE: The creation of the infrastructural Rail Park
145
146
Research + Analysis
Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
PHASE ONE The redesign of Washington Square Park will define a visual relationship with the downtown and create a sense of place. Replacing the current stone railing along the northern edge of the park with a partial sculpted wall, will define this edge of the park and frame the views of the city. This wall will change height, shape, and function as it relates to the views out of the park and eliminates the undesirable sight of the parking lot below. In conjunction with the sculpted wall, a large frame will serve as a focal point of the park and align with the most powerful views of the downtown, looking north down Walnut. Phase one will also focus on creating a strong relationship with the street and public transit. A large pavilion located along Main Street, adjacent to the proposed streetcar terminus, containing the bikeshare hub and casual dining will increase permeability. Infill development containing public uses will establish an edge along Grand Boulevard and provide eyes on the park. Seating, overhead structures, and an interactive billboard feature placed on the Southeastern corner of the site will attract visitors from Crown Center. Adding hardscaped plaza will make the space more flexible for recreational use and events.
147
148 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
149
152 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
A pavilion, located adjacent to the streetcar terminus, will provide seating and cover a building containing the bike share hub and casual dining. This will define the western edge of the park and serve as a permeable interface between the park and the street.
Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
153
154
Research + Analysis
Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
PHASE TWO The extension of Washington Square Park will create a significant public space unmatched by anything that currently exists in Kansas City. The sculpted wall along the northern edge of the park and view frame will be replaced by a grass-lawn amphitheater which will serve as the new focal point and act to divide the park into two major spaces. The northern half of the park will still provide dramatic views of the downtown but the focus of the civic southern portion will shift inward. Phase two will begin with the capping of the Blue Cross/ Blue Shield surface parking lot to the north of the current park. This will create a three-story parking garage with a pedestrian link along the front which will extend to the west to connect to Union Station. The parking garage will have several exits into Washington Square Park, the major of which will be demarcated by the amphitheater structure, which will also house retail and public services. At 20th Street, Walnut Street will be terminated and the current road will be transformed into a pedestrian only plaza and major park entrance. The promenade established in phase one will be extended over the rail lines and end as a grand stair in this plaza.
155
156 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
connection to amtrak
Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
retail
157
158 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
A flexible grass-lawn amphitheater structure will serve as the focal point of Washington Square while demarcating a grand entrance from the parking garage below and housing retail and public services. The amphitheater will also divide the park into two major spaces; the northern half, with an outward focus and connection to downtown, and the southern portion, characterized by its civic connection to the adjacent public space and functions.
Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
159
160 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
Park Boundaries Only! >
The programming of Washington
PEDESTRIAN SITE CIRCULATION
Square Park will allow it be used for a variety of events. Ample seating and dining options will make the park an ideal location for those working downtown to spend their lunch hour. On weekends the grass lawn could hold a fitness class while the plaza is set up for an art fair. The space will also have the ability to function as a grand outdoor concert venue.
MOVEMENT VS. REST
Restaurants & Community Functions
Park Boundaries Only! >
Park Boundaries Only! >
Park Boundaries Only! >
Fitness Class
Amphitheater
Art & Craft Stalls
Gathering Area
Amphitheater
Permanent Food Stall Gathering Area Multimedia Billboard
WEEKDAY USAGE
WEEKEND USAGE
EVENT USAGE
Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
PROGRAM + USE DIAGRAM Capping the Blue Cross/ Blue Shield parking lot will allow a three-story parking garage to be constructed which will accommodate over 2,000 spaces. Along the front of the garage a pedestrian link will connect to Union Station. This will allow Washington Square Park to serve as a park-and-ride hub for the streetcar and Amtrak.
PARKING GARAGE LEVEL ONE
RETAIL PLAN
Retail Parking Garage Connection
PARKING GARAGE LEVEL TWO
PARKING GARAGE LEVEL THREE
161
162 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
The new Walnut Plaza will provide a flexible public space and connect Washington Square Park to the Rail Park and the rest of downtown.
Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
163
164
Research + Analysis
Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
PHASE THREE The infrastructural Rail Park focuses more on the adjacent context and the Crossroads residents. It integrates the artistic, industrial, and rail aspects which make the area one of the most unique in Kansas City. This part of the city is often overlooked but by connecting to Washington Square Park, the Rail Park can help to reconnect the entire downtown. Based on the idea of movement and rest, the Rail Park features a hardscaped, linear plaza and narrower, wooden boardwalk surrounded by native plantings to offer users paths of various ambiances. Along each path there are spaces which provide views of the rail and the park’s native vegetation. At the path’s major intersections, there are plazas which provide gathering spaces and act as nodes connecting to surrounding activities. Phase three of the master plan also includes the construction of residential, retail, and commercial development along the northern edge of the Rail Park. This mixed-use development is intended to draw users into the park with an active storefront and provide sustained users in the residences above.
165
166 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
The rail park will retain the industrial feel of the area which makes the site so unique and feature child-friendly play areas.
Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
167
168
Research + Analysis
Research + Analysis
169
170 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
Water management Located above the former Turkey Creek, the Rail Park site is the lowest topographic point in Kansas City and is currently problematic for the city’s combined sewer. The primary function of the Rail Park is to provide the area with water management strategies which will help to mitigate the stress on the city sewer system. The Rail Park will serve as a break from the impervious surface of the city. The average rainfall event in the Kansas City Metropolitan Area is 1.37 inches, which means the Rail Park site collects 1,123,000 gallons of water within its boundaries each average rainfall.34 That does not include the additional water flowing from as far up as the downtown Loop onto the Rail Park site due to the topographic conditions.
STORMWATER ON SITE
171
172 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
18TH ST T
SEWER SYSTEM
18TH ST T
HP
HP
LP
LP
HP
Relieving some of the burden on the inadequate sewer system through natural strategies allows the land to serve a greater purpose than remain-
WATER FLOW
ing as under-utilized surface parking.
Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
WATER RUNOFF ROUTE
By capturing the rainfall within the park through a designed urban detention pond, flooding issues have the potential to be alleviated and water quality will be improved.
WATER MANAGEMENT ELEMENTS
173
174 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
RAIL PARK EAST WING PLAN
The water management strategies used throughout the Rail Park create an urban wetland which mimics the natural ecology of the site. Within the East Wing of the Rail Park metal dividers create a terraced system which will capture and cleanse rainwater and runoff. As the water flows through the dividers it is filtered in stages so that when it reaches the detention pond located at the lowest point in the Rail Park it is safe to be used for on-site irrigation and water features.
rail lines
RAIL PARK
interactive wall
detention
linear plaza
Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
rail lines
native grasses
RAIL PARK
overlook
linear plaza
rail yard
EAST PLAZA SECTION
Sections taken throughout the Rail Park show how the spaces of various functions will exist with the infra-
ear plaza, and west plaza.
WEST PLAZA SECTION
rain garden
RAIL PARK
plaza
boardwalk
the rail yard, the boardwalk and lin-
water wall
structural elements: the east plaza,
rail lines
detention overlook
BOARDWALK SECTION
RAIL PARK
boardwalk
rain garden
linear plaza
RAIL YARD SECTION
175
176 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park In the West Wing of the Rail Park, there will be an interactive stone aquifer leading to a child-friendly plaza. Capitalizing on the existing pedestrian bridge will complete the circulation route and strengthen the park’s relationship to Union Station.
Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
177
178 Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park By implementing water management strategies, such as bioswales, forebays, rain gardens, and dry and wet detention basins, the Rail Park will capture rainfall and stormwater runoff, cleanse it, and allow it to be used on site.
Design Proposition: Washington Sq. + Rail Park
179