After an all day meeting of presentations and debate, a selection committee has chosen W-Architecture to design and facilitate construction of the $20 million Pier uplands projects set to align the new Pier Park with downtown along Beach and Bayshore Drives.
W-Architecture called the project the city’s “extraordinary centerpiece.”
“The spirit of the waterfront is one of inclusion, and we are committed to honoring this idea in the design process as well as in the final form. We will build upon both the Waterfront Master Plan and the Pier Park Plan and will empower the broadest constituency to be clients and supporters for this project,” the team’s Request for Qualfications described.
The team, which includes Destination St. Pete Pier designer Wannemacher Jensen, beat out ASD/Rogers Partners for the job even though that team was awarded the new Pier project.
Also defeated were Alfonso Architects, the team behind the defeated Alma design for a new Pier that had been favored by former St. Pete Publics Works Administrator Mike Connors.
Alfonso Architects came in second with ASD/Rogers Partners finishing third.
W-Architects had been behind the Pier design popular among many environmentalists, Blue Pier.
Not ranked were Denver-based Civitas, which competed along side the 2013 Lens and AECOM, the firm that completed the city’s recently approved downtown waterfront master plan.
While the Consultants Competitive Negotiation Act binds the process the same way the Pier selection process was, the city is not required to hear public input.
The Uplands project is geared toward connecting the new Pier to downtown with a grand entryway, space for open-air markets, a pedestrian promenade and an emphasis on public art.
Requests for proposals for two Pier Uplands restaurants are expected to go out in January or February.
