About the Project
“Our neighborhood has been coined the ‘Toxic Triangle.’ This highway network and system has some of the highest concentrations of asthma in the entire country. How do you create a mixed use space in this underutilized vacant space that can be a catalytic, exciting place for people to be?” asks David Shuffler, Executive Director at Youth Ministries for Peace and Justice.
For eight years, YMPJ has been working to reclaim the underused space beneath the Bruckner expressway to build the Soundview Economic Hub. In order to bring their vision to life, YMPJ worked closely with designers from Public Works Partners and Ennead Labs and engineers from Buro Happold to create a new public space in their neighborhood.
“It was really YMPJ’s vision to bring the art to the space and to bring the vendors to the space,” says Masha Konopleva, Associate and Research Lead at Ennead Labs. “And that really lay the groundwork for our design process.” The design team helped design and construct modular art frames (confirm wording. Easels? Display boards?) for art from local Bronx artists that YMPJ had commissioned for the space.
In September, YMPJ welcomed the community to the opening of the Soundview Economic Hub with their inaugural art exhibit and market. The team is continuing to program the space, hosting a market every Sunday throughout the fall. “When you create space for the community, it is utilized in an abundant way,” says Shuffler.
Learn More About the Project
Explore the team’s full report on their process, findings, and vision for what’s next.
Explore the team’s presentation at the Local Center Summit in November 2024.
Learn more about Chhaya CDC’s vision for Richmond Hill.
Team
Youth Ministries for Peace and Justice (YMPJ) was founded in 1994 with the mission to rebuild and improve critically impoverished neighborhoods of the South Bronx. YMPJ prepares residents to lead campaigns that prioritize environmental justice, economic opportunity, and fundamental change within the systems of oppression that challenge their ability to thrive.
David Shuffler
Madhur Bhadsavle
Reece Brosco
Ennead Lab, the research and development arm of Ennead Architects, together with the urban planning and consulting firm Public Works Partners, have teamed up to combine their shared passion for community-led design with their expertise in architecture, planning and community engagement. As a partnership, they have a history of collaboration in the South Bronx and are looking forward to applying their participatory design approach in support of YMPJ’s vision for the Soundview Economic Hub.
Masha Konopleva
Daniel McCombie
Ayumi Sugiyama
Adam Mead
Melissa S. Lee
Amairani Marin Tovar
Joel Hochman
Special thanks to John Sloane and Peri Chain at Buro Happold for providing engineering support. And special thanks to Siddhartha Sanchez, Nick Hornig and Malachi Pursley who contributed to the first phase of the project.
Images courtesy of partner organizations
Support
Urban Design Forum programs are made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.
To learn more about supporting the Local Center, please contact Katherine Sacco, katherine@urbandesignforum.org and Lauren Nye, lauren.n@anhd.org.