The five finalists for the 2012 James B. Recchie Design Award were announced back in August, and the winner was announced on Thursday last week. The Scioto Mile and the new Main Street and Rich Street Bridges crossing the Scioto River in Downtown Columbus were chosen as the winners of this year’s award.
This marks the first time in the history of the design awards that two winners were honored jointly.
“The merging of the two finalists became obvious to the Jury as they visited the five award finalists yesterday – it is the complexity of what took place, the many partners involved, the level of commitment to the highest quality of civic design that made both of these projects winners,” said Nancy Recchie, Historic Preservation Consultant with Benjamin D. Rickey & Co. and sister of the Award’s namesake. “The Jury discussed experiencing the bridges from the park and the park from the bridges, the interconnectivity of the entire composition and the coordination and collaboration that was required to make it work. This is a transformative project for downtown and the community – the process has brought together so many elements with such outstanding results.”
Each year, Columbus Landmarks honors the buildings, developments and public spaces that make exceptional strides in promoting historic preservation and quality urban design.
The Scioto Mile is owned by the City of Columbus, was designed by MKSK, 360 Architecture, Schooley Caldwell Associates and HKI, and was developed by Columbus Downtown Development Corporation. The Scioto River Bridges include the Main Street and Rich Street bridges and are owned by ODOT and the City of Columbus. The Main Street Bridge was designed by DLZ Ohio and MKSK and the Rich Street Bridge was designed by Burgess & Niple and MKSK.
For more information visit www.columbuslandmarks.org.