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Bevan X St.Pauls Access Points Seen From Route 139 Overpass


Bergen Arches 
  



Location
Jersey City, NJ, USA
Client
City of Jersey City, Department of Infrastructure
Status
 2024- , Ongoing 
Program
Ecological Preserve, Adaptive Reuse, Linear Park  
Scope
 Acess points, Tunnels, and Bridges Frameworks and Design 
Size
1-mile corridor with varying width and depth  
Team
Nahyun Hwang, David Eugin Moon, Caroline Wineburg, Angelina Andriani Putri, Jean Im, Phoebe Hyunjung Lee, Myungju Ko, Kevin Hai Pham, Max St. Pierre
Collaborators
Supermass Studio, Arup



Bergen Arches in the Historical Context 


Bergen Arches (a.k.a "Erie Cut") is a mile-long sunken railroad Right of Way in Jersey City, originally constructed between 1906 and 1910 and abandoned since the 1980s. Hidden for decades below protective barricades and fences, the rare ecological zone in the heart of the city is now flush with spontaneously seeded flora and fauna.



Current Conditions and Site Location


The Architecture of the Bergen Arches, a part of a larger effort by the local municipality and the NJ transit authority, engages access points and tunnel and bridge spaces as the key design framework for the new public space. Working with the local community, city agencies, and other collaborators, the project engages the unique anthropocenic geology, spatiality, and ecology of the Bergen Arches, to produce the new civic infrastructure that sensitively supports the existing historic structures and wildlife, as well as the new programmatic needs of the city.




Access Points Framework

The access design for the Bergen Arches presents unique challenges and exceptional opportunities for thoughtfully designed infrastructure that enables equitable public access and engagement with the rare 1-mile sunken ecological corridor in the heart of the city.


Responding to the unique physical, logistical, regulatory, and environmental complexities of the site and its diverse and culturally rich neighborhood, the access design becomes, at an urban scale, a critical framework to coordinate the overall implementation of the project while providing the surrounding communities with inclusive access to nature and future programs, supporting the existing historic structures and wildlife. Considering factors including phasing and project timeline, grade separation, transit, and landing area availability, as well as the future tunnels and bridge programs, five access points are allocated across the length of the project.









Access Points Design - Preliminary Concept Diagram and View


At an architectural scale, the access points’ primary design concept is to integrate the experience of the vertical journey with various mid-air programs shared by the visitors and various flora and fauna of the Bergen Arches. The design prioritizes the use of sustainable and wildlife-friendly materials. 


Access Points Design- Selected Details


For instance, at Bevan X St.Pauls Avenues (shown at the top of the page), the access points provide a direct connection from and to the forthcoming St. Pauls Ave. Park and adjacent communities, including the residents of the nearby senior housing complex. The elevator on the southside accommodates accessible and safe routes for the users of the "Sensory Tunnel" program while the stair tower at the north side of the intersection, with carefully configured openings and material choices, doubles as a support structure for local and migratory birds congregating at Hackensack River with nesting spaces and feeding features and an observation tower for human visitors. 


View from Palisade Ave. Elevator Entry Bridge, Looking East

The Palisade Avenue access point features a unique combination of structures, including a timber pedestrian bridge that traverses the Bergen Arches, offering an immersive journey through the tree canopy. This bridge, inspired by the historical tram flyover, not only connects visitors to the site but also provides a temporary pedestrian path during the planned Palisade Avenue bridge reconstruction. An elevator and stair on the RT. 139 side provide accessible routes and diverse vantage points, while also placing visitors in intimate proximity to the existing and new ecology of the Bergen Arches.


Tunnels & Bridges Adaptive Reuse

The historical tunnels and bridges, comprising one-third of the site and each with singular form, proportion, atmosphere, and micro-climate, offer distinctive spaces for community programs in the Bergen Arches, allowing the concentration of human-use in the existing structures preserving the ecological space outside and retaining historical narratives of the Bergen Arches.






(Left) Programmatic Context – Local Cultural, Educational, Environmental, And Community Organizations
(Right) Program Groups for Bergen Arches Tunnels and Bridges





Tunnels and Bridges - Program Allocation


Four program categories—Nature/Ecology, Knowledge/Education, Care/Rest, and Culture/Art—are proposed based on environmental and spatial characteristics of the tunnels and bridges, neighborhood programmatic contexts, and community partner inputs. The program combinations and configurations for each tunnel and bridge have been determined considering the proximity to potential partner institutions and organizations, as well as in relationship to possible future transit stops. Tunnels and bridges are activated in a phased, gradual, and distributed manner, coordinated with the construction of Access Points.





  Tunnels and Bridges - program adaptations at  selected tunnels



Soil and Potting Area For Nursery at the Summit Avenue tunnel 

The Summit Avenue tunnel offers a main ecological educational facilit for the Bergen Arches that can partner with local schools and community organizations as part of an edible schoolyard or similar initiative, while providing an opportunity for year-round growing and an immersive indoor garden experience. The tunnel also includes nurser space for phyto-remediating plants, a seed library, and other ecological lab spaces for the care and study of the Bergen Arches’ ecology.



Palimpsest Wall and Sound Installation Area with Ballast Alcove at the western end of the Bevan Tunnel

The Bevan Tunnel, with its layered and exposed surface structures, presents a unique opportunity to showcase both the geological and constructed history of the Bergen Arches, as well as its industrial and infrastructural heritage. Fissures and crevices in the tunnel allow visitors to glimpse into the rock, inspiring a program that explores both the historical and multi-sensory experiences of the tunnel. Through specific installations and tactile moments, visitors are encouraged to pause and embark on a self-guided tour of the tunnel. A floating braille handrail and a suggestively marked pathway encourage movement through the space, which is designed to be inclusive for all visitors, potentially in partnership with St. Joseph’s School for the Blind and other local institutions.


Programs space vignettes for the Central Avenue Tunnel

The Central Avenue Tunnel functions as a multifunctional community hub, serving as the neighborhood's living room. As the longest tunnel with a uniquely immersive atmosphere, it is ideally suited to host a diverse range of programs, including projections, performances, and both formal and informal community gatherings such as readings, public assemblies, art displays, play, and communal food sharing. The tunnel also features a semi-outdoor library space, an archive with operable enclosures, and a contemplative water feature area with drinking ponds for small animals that connects to the natural ponding at the western end.


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