Gallery: A $335M Project to Save NYC From Climate Catastrophe
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The Department of Housing and Urban Development has awarded $335 million to Bjarke Ingels’ Copenhagen and New York-based architecture firm BIG, a winner in the Rebuild by Design competition.
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BIG's plan, the Big U, proposes to buttress Manhattan against the next superstorm by creating sloping, organic landscapes near the water's edge.
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Elevated parks and walkways would both shield downtown Manhattan from rising tides, and create more park space for residents.
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Here, a rendering shows how elevated green space would also buffer noise from FDR Drive, making the East River Park more tranquil.
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Instead of fighting against the water, the Big U is designed with the expectation of floods.
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Underneath the FDR, further south towards Chinatown, will be pavilions made available as storefronts, and public art spaces.
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To determine what each neighborhood's needs are, Ingels and his team at BIG interviewed businesses and residents around the edges of the city. As a result, once finished, no two areas of the Big U will be identical.
