lbnh gateway - Broad street station

This project was a community engagement project. Our study site highlighted the Lower Broadway Neighborhood in Newark NJ. Newark is known to be a largely urban city, a transit hub, and densely populated. We met with La Casa De Don Pedro, a nonprofit organization in Newark and The Lower Broadway Neighborhood Association (LBNH). After a series of meetings and site visits, we came to the conclusion that the neighborhood lacked a sense of identity. Through our extensive research and cohesive design, as a class we began to help build an identity for our study site. My group partner, Meng Guo, and I were tasked with designing the gateway. The gateway consists of Newark's Broad Street Station and an underpass, which is defined by highway I-280, that leads into the neighborhood. Meng and I wanted our space to cater to pedestrians and create safe, experiential, and multipurpose use spaces as people transition into the Lower Broadway Neighborhood.

site plan Composed by Meng Guo

This site plan illustrates the plaza located east of Broad Street Station featuring the proposed plantings.

This plan highlights the proposed paving pattern for the plaza inspired by the existing pattern at Broad Street Station

Perspective Composed by Meng Guo

This perspective illustrates a view from Broad Street looking across the plaza to see Broad Street Station in the background. This

rendering highlights all proposed design elements to allow for full immersion in our plaza.

Activity diagrams Composed by myself

Farmer's Market/ Popup Shop

Performance Space

Night Scene

These three diagrams simply show the different possible activities that can occur in our plaza. Given the popularity of farmer's markets, our plaza can accommodate enough space for one. Historically Newark is known for music, specifically jazz, which inspired the possibility of hosting concerts. Our last diagram shows a view of how it will look at night featuring lights for both safety and aesthetic.

underpass perspectives Composed by myself

Broad Street Entrance

Broad Street Entrance Night

State Street Entrance

State Street Entrance Night

Underpasses, especially this one specifically, can be dangerous for pedestrians given the lack of sunlight and a clear outline for overall pedestrian accessibility. The main goal for the design of the underpass is to create a safe and experiential space that pedestrians and vehicles can share as they transition into the Lower Broadway Neighborhood. The design sought to achieve exactly that through paved crosswalks and street lamps to provide safety. Linear paving patterns and lights were also proposed to influence movement as well as create an over all experience.