Latest news with #BjarkeIngels
The Independent
29-07-2025
- The Independent
Abandoned power plant outside New York City to be transformed into huge family attraction with water slides
Designs have been unveiled revealing how an abandoned coal-burning power plant outside New York City will be transformed into a multi-story family attraction with a glass façade, swimming pools, water slides, restaurants and a semi-green roof. The power plant, reimagined by renowned global architecture firm Bjarke Ingels Group (aka Big), will be the central attraction at a new 125-acre waterfront park on Manresa Island in southeast Connecticut called Manresa Wilds, set to open in 2030. This landscape, once scarred by pollution and inaccessible to the public for 75 years, will become "a vibrant first-of-its-kind destination where nature, history and imagination meet", according to Manresa Island Corporation, the nonprofit leading the creation of Manresa Wilds. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the former island — a causeway was built in 1860 connecting it to the mainland and South Norwalk — was home to a recreation destination called the Manresa Institute, with the coal-fired power plant arriving in the 1950s and subsequently much controversy. A major fuel oil spill severely damaged the area's tidal flats in 1969, while water contamination in the 70s, 80s, and 90s made the power plant, by then oil powered, the focus of protests by environmental groups. Ironically, damage caused by Hurricane Sandy in 2012 enhanced the site's natural environment — the power plant was decommissioned in 2013, a birch forest sprang up on disposed coal ash and the osprey population soared. The new park has been designed by New York City -based landscape architects Scape, which wants the public to enjoy the island's ecological richness, and a host of new features. The firm said in a statement that these will include waterfront walking paths, a restored wetland, tree canopies to mitigate extreme heat and flooding, an "expansive" green lawn and meadow, a public beach with "sweeping views of the Long Island Sound and New York City" and pedestrian bridges "that will provide opportunities to observe wildlife". Manresa Wilds, it's claimed, will lead to the "protection, expansion and revitalization of the wetlands and salt marshes". The vision for the power plant was also revealed in the statement, by Bjarke Ingels, Founder & Creative Director of Big. He said: "We seek to rediscover and reanimate the majestic spaces hidden within the bones of the decommissioned piece of infrastructure. "Boilers, silos, and turbine halls are post-industrial cathedrals awaiting exploration and reinterpretation." The eight-story boiler building will feature "multiple swimming areas and food and beverage options", with the turbine hall converted into a multi-purpose event space and speakeasy. Big revealed that the adjacent office building — the smallest structure — "will provide opportunities for marine and ecological learning as a laboratory with classrooms and research spaces". An underground water channel, meanwhile, "will be unearthed to create a scenic waterway that connects the boiler building, turbine hall, and office building". Ingels added: "As an extension of Scape's resettlement of the island for the enjoyment of human life among many other forms of life, we seek to extend that resettlement into the cavernous spaces within. "By editing rather than adding, we will open up and clear out the existing spaces so that the once coal-powered plant can become the framework for the social and cultural life of Manresa's future — from energy infrastructure to social infrastructure." Manresa Island Corporation told The Independent that the project will be of huge benefit to the local population. It said: "While the project's programing and final design are still in development, Manresa Wilds will support the local economy in many ways, first by unlocking access to 1.75 miles of waterfront to create meaningful recreational and educational programing for all. "Manresa Island Corp is also committed to providing long-term economic benefit for the Norwalk community through partnerships with local businesses and academic institutions and numerous employment opportunities."
The Independent
29-07-2025
- The Independent
Abandoned power plant outside New York City to be transformed into huge family resort with water slides
Designs have been unveiled revealing how an abandoned coal-burning power plant outside New York City will be transformed into a multi-story family resort with a glass façade, swimming pools, water slides, restaurants and a semi-green roof. The power plant, reimagined by renowned global architecture firm Bjarke Ingels Group (aka Big), will be the central attraction at a new 125-acre waterfront park on Manresa Island in southeast Connecticut called Manresa Wilds, set to open in 2030. This landscape, once scarred by pollution and inaccessible to the public for 75 years, will become "a vibrant first-of-its-kind destination where nature, history and imagination meet", according to Manresa Island Corporation, the nonprofit leading the creation of Manresa Wilds. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the former island — a causeway was built in 1860 connecting it to the mainland and South Norwalk — was home to a recreation destination called the Manresa Institute, with the coal-fired power plant arriving in the 1950s and subsequently much controversy. A major fuel oil spill severely damaged the area's tidal flats in 1969, while water contamination in the 70s, 80s, and 90s made the power plant, by then oil powered, the focus of protests by environmental groups. Ironically, damage caused by Hurricane Sandy in 2012 enhanced the site's natural environment — the power plant was decommissioned in 2013, a birch forest sprang up on disposed coal ash and the osprey population soared. The new park has been designed by New York City -based landscape architects Scape, which wants the public to enjoy the island's ecological richness, and a host of new features. The firm said in a statement that these will include waterfront walking paths, a restored wetland, tree canopies to mitigate extreme heat and flooding, an "expansive" green lawn and meadow, a public beach with "sweeping views of the Long Island Sound and New York City" and pedestrian bridges "that will provide opportunities to observe wildlife". Manresa Wilds, it's claimed, will lead to the "protection, expansion and revitalization of the wetlands and salt marshes". The vision for the power plant was also revealed in the statement, by Bjarke Ingels, Founder & Creative Director of Big. He said: "We seek to rediscover and reanimate the majestic spaces hidden within the bones of the decommissioned piece of infrastructure. "Boilers, silos, and turbine halls are post-industrial cathedrals awaiting exploration and reinterpretation." The eight-story boiler building will feature "multiple swimming areas and food and beverage options", with the turbine hall converted into a multi-purpose event space and speakeasy. Big revealed that the adjacent office building — the smallest structure — "will provide opportunities for marine and ecological learning as a laboratory with classrooms and research spaces". An underground water channel, meanwhile, "will be unearthed to create a scenic waterway that connects the boiler building, turbine hall, and office building". Ingels added: "As an extension of Scape's resettlement of the island for the enjoyment of human life among many other forms of life, we seek to extend that resettlement into the cavernous spaces within. "By editing rather than adding, we will open up and clear out the existing spaces so that the once coal-powered plant can become the framework for the social and cultural life of Manresa's future — from energy infrastructure to social infrastructure." Manresa Island Corporation told The Independent that the project will be of huge benefit to the local population. It said: "While the project's programing and final design are still in development, Manresa Wilds will support the local economy in many ways, first by unlocking access to 1.75 miles of waterfront to create meaningful recreational and educational programing for all. "Manresa Island Corp is also committed to providing long-term economic benefit for the Norwalk community through partnerships with local businesses and academic institutions and numerous employment opportunities."
CairoScene
21-06-2025
- Business
- CairoScene
BIG Reimagines Dubai's Jebel Ali Racecourse as an Urban Oasis
BIG–Bjarke Ingels plans to transform Dubai's Jebel Ali Racecourse into a vibrant, walkable district centered on community life. Jun 21, 2025 In partnership with Dubai-based developer A.R.M. Holding, architecture firm BIG has unveiled a masterplan to redevelop the 5-square-kilometre Jebel Ali site into a pedestrian-oriented urban district. The design aligns with the Dubai 2040 Urban Vision and focuses on mobility, environmental performance, and livability. At the centre of the project is a large public park that runs through eight distinct neighbourhoods, creating a green corridor surrounded by shaded plazas and walkable streets. The plan integrates natural elements with infrastructure to support more accessible and climate-conscious urban living. The site's existing racetrack will be retained and incorporated into the development, acknowledging the location's heritage while introducing new public facilities, cultural institutions, and civic spaces. The layout is designed as a series of urban clusters surrounded by green space, offering visual and physical links to the central park. Transport within the district will rely on an automated system to minimise car use and promote alternative mobility options such as walking and cycling. The design incorporates passive cooling features, shaded areas, and desert-inspired landscaping to create more comfortable outdoor environments throughout the year. 'This project is an archipelago of urban islands in a sea of green—reimagining the site not as a collection of objects in isolation, but as a living landscape of interconnected communities,' BIG founder Bjarke Ingels says. Construction is set to begin in early 2026. The Jebel Ali project is intended to inform future urban developments in Dubai, particularly in areas of walkability, integration, and environmental adaptability.
Yahoo
01-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
$1B residential project kicks off in Gowanus — as ‘starchitect' reveals vision for 1,000-unit rental tower
BIG is back – and better — in Gowanus. The developers of 175 Third St. tapped Bjarke Ingels' much-in-demand architectural firm to design their planned, 1,000-unit, rental apartment tower – and it's nothing like BIG's earlier concept for previous site-owner Aby Rosen's RFR Realty. The new 175 Third St. in the burgeoning residential neighborhood from Charney Companies and Tavros will stand 27 stories encompassing over 1 million square feet – the fifth building by the partners on four different sites on the Gowanus Canal's eastern side. The images on this page reveal Ingels' new vision for the first time, which the architect described as 'stacked blocks of cascading concrete volumes, cascading down toward the canal waterfront.' 'We had our eyes on the site forever,' Charney Companies principal Sam Charney said. 'But someone else always owned it' until 'the price finally came down [to $164 million] and we knew this was the time.' The purchase closed in May. When RFR bailed, it was expected that Charney and Tavros would choose a different architect. Instead, they liked Ingels' new concept the best of the proposals they solicited from a half-dozen 'starchitects.' 'We did not like the previous iteration,' Charney told Realty Check. 'It was inefficient and hard to build. It had a red-brick design that kind of drowned out the [red brick] Powerhouse Arts structure next door.' But Ingels' new conception 'blew us away,' Charney said. Its textured 'architectural concrete' will look as if it's chiseled out of rock' — an homage to the area's industrial past. Chamfered, angled corners at various heights generate 'cool outdoor spaces.' A federal-supervised cleanup of the two-mile-long, noxious canal that began ten years ago prompted the city to rezone 82 blocks in the former low-rise manufacturing area for residential use. The rush to create nearly 9,000 new rental apartments spurred a construction boom. A portion of the once-toxic canal – long a punch line of stand-up comedians – emerged as the district's unlikely scenic centerpiece. The waterway now suggests a picturesque, slow-moving river between handsome apartment towers on both sides. The new 175 Third Street will have 1,000 rental units, of which 25% are 'affordable' as required by neighborhood Mandatory Inclusionary Zoning. It will follow Charney and Tavros' 224-unit Union Channel, which opened in February and is already 60% rented; and Douglass Port at 251 Douglass St. and Nevins Landing at 310 and 340 Nevins St., both under Charney estimated the development cost of 175 Third St., including the land purchase, at about $1 billion. With 100,000 square feet of retail space, it will be the crown jewel of what Charney and Tavros call a 'Gowanus Wharf campus' even though the buildings aren't next to each other. It will boast a 30,000 square-foot public park with 250 feet of canal boardwalk; sports facilities, a dog run, rooftop lounges, spa pools and a three-acre, landscaped courtyard, plus 35,000 square feet of lavish indoor amenities. A waterfront promenade will eventually run the canal's length, with each developer responsible for the segment in front of their buildings. The ones Charney and Tavros are installing on their Nevins and Third Street frontages will be landscaped by Field Operations of High Line Park fame. Construction of 175 Third St. will likely start when the Nevins and Douglass Street buildings are finished roughly a year from now.
Hi Dubai
12-05-2025
- Business
- Hi Dubai
A.R.M. Holding Unveils Urban Island Project to Transform Jebel Ali Racecourse Site
A.R.M. Holding has announced plans to transform the area around Dubai's Jebel Ali Racecourse into a walkable, community-focused neighbourhood, with construction slated to begin in 2026. The UAE-based investment firm has partnered with global architecture studio Pegg-Bjarke Ingels to deliver a 5 sq km development centered on green living, daily movement, and social interaction. At the heart of the masterplan is a large central park, surrounded by interconnected urban 'islands' designed to blend nature with urban infrastructure. Residents will be able to access key amenities, workplaces, and public spaces within a five-minute walk. The plan prioritises walkability, public health, and social cohesion, and is guided by 17 key performance indicators aimed at improving the environment, economy, and quality of life. Inspired by traditional architecture, the neighbourhood will also integrate equestrian themes and support small and medium-sized businesses across food, retail, and the arts. Mohammed Saeed Al Shehhi, speaking on behalf of A.R.M. Holding, said the project reflects the company's values of creativity and community-focused development, aiming to create spaces that strengthen human connections in a city home to over 200 nationalities. Bjarke Ingels described the vision as a transformation of the Jebel Ali Racecourse into a 'green oasis' of connected, livable urban islands designed to foster well-being and prosperity. News Source: Khaleej Times
