Chicago Main Branch Riverwalk

Honor Award

While their primary purpose is to protect pedestrians from debris falling from the bridges overhead, these highly reflective canopies do so much more. Their reflective surfaces catch light from the water and give it an additional bounce, effectively blurring the boundary between river and riverwalk. "It's a strong idea, a modernist idea, for a space that would otherwise be forgettable," a juror said. At heights where they can be touched by passersby, the stainless steel tiles are sanded with a multidirectional finish for protection from and easy repair after vandalism. Higher up and out of human reach, the tiles are polished to a more mirror-like finish. Because the panels curve to match the structure of the bascule bridges they hang beneath, the reflections they make bend and warp into countless abstractions, providing ever-changing ornamentation for what is essentially an underpass. "This is urban infrastructure that takes its cue from the landscape instead of from buildings," a juror noted. Jurors liked the way the panels on multiple bridges provide a rhythmic experience punctuated by the more classical elements of the intervening spaces on the riverwalk. "It's episodic," one noted. "That enhances the experience of walking along the river."

Architect: Ross Barney Architects
Client: Chicago Department of Transportation
Consultants: Collins Engineering (prime contractor, structural and civil engineer) ; Jacobs Ryan Associates (landscape architects)
General contractor: Walsh Construction (Michigan Avenue Riverwalk); Rausch Construction (Wabash Avenue Riverwalk)
Location: Chicago, IL
Category: Miscellaneous