about

Founders Station is home to residences, offices, retailers, and eateries. A vacant parking lot was included in the development, but rather than infilling this space with more building mass, Creature proposed transforming it into a pedestrian thoroughfare with ground floor storefronts punched into the side of the masonry walls. Not only would this result in more practically sized, adequately-lit retail and living units, but it would combat an inherent problem of pedestrian access on an urban scale.

In the days of horse drawn carriages, Morris Avenue was the heart of downtown. However with the automobile came new bridges and roads that virtually sealed Morris off from any pedestrian traffic. The issue is one of safety, or at least the perception of safety. Founders Station’s pedestrian corridor provides a solution: a well lit, highly visible, tree lined street that has already begun to recharge Morris Avenue with new life. The hardscape materials are a weaving of 1st Avenue’s concrete sidewalks and Morris Avenue’s stained and stamped “cobblestone” sidewalks. New structures, like balconies, canopies, and an outboard landmark staircase, are clad in a patterned, bronze-colored steel, clearly demarcating old and new.