BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — The competition for re-vamp Buffalo's Skyway Corridor has narrowed down its list from 16 to nine; including two designs from Western New York companies.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D-N.Y.) announced the nine finalists for the, "Aim for the Sky: Competition to Re-Imagine the Buffalo Skyway Corridor," will pitch their ideas in front of a live audience and judging panel on Tuesday as they compete for a $100,000 award for the competition's winning idea.
Here are the nine finalists:
Skyway 2.0
- Team: Team Ramboll
- Location: Syracuse, N.Y. and the Netherlands
- What would it include?: This proposal would keep the Skyway, where it would eventually accommodate multi-modal access including either bus rapid transit or light rail transit, as well as a series of new pedestrian bridges between the Inner and Outer Harbor.
The Skyway River Loop
- Team: Marvel Architects
- Location: New York City
- What would it include?: This proposal would keep the Skyway, while adding a new street-level greenway and new local bridge connections between the Inner and Outer Harbor.
The City of Lights: Owning our Waterfront
- Team: SWBR, Fisher Associates and MRB Group
- Location: Rochester, N.Y.
- What would it include?: This proposal would remove the Skyway, including its access ramps, in order to re-purpose a piece of the Skyway high-level bridge. This would become the "SkyPark," giving Western New Yorkers views of the water and recreational amenities. This would create a new "Tifft Street Extension" connecting to I-190, as well as a new lift bridge at Michigan Avenue; and a new road connection between Ohio Street and Fuhrmann Boulevard.
Queen City Harbor: Bringing Buffalo to the Water's Edge
- Team: Christian Calleri, Jeannine Muller, Min Soo Kang, Andrea De Carlo
- Location: Washington
- What would it include?: This proposal would remove the Skyway, while re-purposing the concrete piers of the Skyway high-level bridge to accommodate solar and wind power production, creating an area for real estate development. In addition, it would provide access through a retrofit of Fuhrmann Boulevard and Ohio Street to accommodate multi-modal access including bus rapid transit, while new lift bridge connections would be provided to the Outer Harbor at Main Street.
Highways to Parkways
- Team: Ryan Kucinski, Steinberg Hart
- Location: Los Angeles
- What would it include?: This proposal would remove the Skyway, while convert the elevated expressway with an Olmsted parkway. Similarly, this proposal will convert a segment of I-190 downtown to include light rail transit extensions to the Southtowns and to Buffalo Niagara International Airport.
Olmsted Parkway
- Team: Andrew Vesselinovitch, Lake Erie for All Team
- Location: Buffalo, N.Y., Chicago, Cleveland
- What would it include?: This proposal would remove the Skyway and several interchanges and weave segments along I-190, in order to replace the Skyway with an Olmsted Parkway by remove the high-level bridge. The Outer Harbor would see a new Olmsted Park, while seeing new real estate development as well as a "Ship Canal Promenade"; and a Buffalo Sculpture Park. It would create a new lift bridge connecting the Inner and Outer Harbor, while adding a new light rail extension to the Outer Harbor.
The Sapphire Necklace
- Team: Moule & Polyzoides, Architects and Urbanists, with Clark Patterson Lee
- Location: Pasadena, Calif.
- What would it include?: This proposal would remove the Skyway, and Route 5 entirely from I-190 through the Outer Harbor and south to Tifft. It would be replaced by a, "grand boulevard," along Ohio Street to include real estate, entertainment and recreational venues with nature preserves. The Outer Harbor would wither create a large open space or a small mixed-use village center. This would create a new lift bridge at Michigan Avenue, and multi-modal access features on all local streets in order to support a light rail extension down Ohio Street, as well as bus and water taxi access.
Vision for Skyway Corridor and Relocated NY Route 5 Highway
- Team: Raymond C. Vaughan and Anthony James
- Location: Buffalo, N.Y.
- What would it include?: This proposal would keep the Skyway, by diverting traffic onto a new highway, and reducing Furhmann Boulevard to one lane in each direction.
Buffalo Up!
- Team: CLNW, Wendy Wang
- Location: Boston
- What would it include?: This proposal would eventually remove the Skyway, by creating a sustainable transport system to replace for the existing highway. By phasing out the Skyway, it would allow developers to incorporate bicycle and pedestrian access, while developing other road, bridge, and transit access.
You can find all of the designs here.
