The Columbus Landmarks Foundation announced today the winner of its 31st annual James B. Recchie Design Award as Lower.com Field, the brand new home to The Columbus Crew SC Major League Soccer team.
The stadium, designed by HNTB, Inc. and MKSK serves as a new sports anchor in the Arena District portion of Downtown Columbus, which will eventually be flanked by additional mixed-use development known as “Astor Park”.
“This project manages to have a ‘wow’ feeling as you enter the gates and experience the excitement of soccer, but it also has a strong public realm that can be enjoyed every day of the year without ever entering the facility,” stated Michael Paplow, AIA, one of the award’s jurors.
The annual Recchie Awards are chaired by a three-member jury, which recognized the stadium as the winner due to the attention to detail, integration into the existing cityscape and the connection to the existing Olentangy bike trail, encouraging community participation through alternative transit modes. 2021 jurors included Christie Angel, President and CEO, YWCA Columbus; Dorothee Imbert, Director of the Knowlton School of Architecture, Professor of Landscape Architecture, OSU; and Michael Paplow, AIA, Vice President and Principal, FMS Architects.
The four other project finalists to achieve runner-up status include:
“The finalists represent the dynamic nature of the city’s built environment and the vision, tenacity and ability to be successful when faced with important opportunities,” said Nancy Recchie, sister of the award’s namesake.
For more information, visit www.columbuslandmarks.org.