WATERFRONT REGENERATION: Mediating Boundaries of Abandonment Along the Hudson River

Abstract

The edge between city + water has become a divide. This thesis addresses

this edge that has been thickened by abandoned industry and challenges the

way we design for our changing waterfronts through a design approach

relying on specificity of place. The design proposal shows how the water/city

divide can become a connective threshold, how industrial landscapes can be

reclaimed, and how this place-specific investigation can be an example to

learn from through Westchester County’s Hudson River Waterfront, the City

of Yonkers, and the abandoned Glenwood Power Plant. This method has

resulted with the integration of building into landscape so that it acts as part of

a new infrastructure which cleans water, supports urban agriculture, and

provides recreational and training opportunities for the surrounding

community. Flows have been re-purposed to knit connections in all axes, and

begin to heal water’s edge.