POP Rocks is featured in an article published by Fast Company highlighting the creation and success of the pedestrian-centric development in the Mission Rock neighborhood in San Francisco! POP Rocks, a universally accessible public art installation, is one of the street room installations that activates this new public corridor. The mixed use neighborhood was developed through a partnership between the San Francisco Giants, the Port of San Francisco, and developer Tishman Speyer. Read the Fast Company Article here!
Happy 2025 From Terrain Work!
POP Rocks | San Francisco, CA
From all of us at Terrain Work we wish you a Happy New Year in 2025! We look forward to what the new year brings with all of our friends, collaborators, and clients.
West Harlem Going Wild
West Harlem Going Wild transforms a vacant asphalt lot on 128th Street in Manhattan into a planted respite. The design addresses issues that urban environments face in the wake of climate change, such as: reducing the heat island effect, improving air quality, breaking up the urban soil profile to allow for water percolation into the ground, and upcycling materials onsite to reduce waste and emissions associated with the construction industry. Working with limited resources on a shoestring budget, the design utilizes discarded construction materials and plant species that spontaneously occur in the urban environment that have historically been considered “weeds” to form a grass roots solution to these global problems. As a prototype for future urban landscapes, the site will be continuously monitored for species performance and longevity over time.
As we grapple with the deepening climate crisis that threatens humanity, novel and incremental solutions to combat this complex problem are desperately needed. It requires both broad level policy changes from governments as well as grass roots movements from individuals to address the myriad causes of climate change. In this spirit, West Harlem Going Wild was born. West Harlem Going Wild is a model of how underutilized and marginal urban spaces can be adapted to become productive and thriving landscapes with a limited budget. Learn more about West Harlem Going Wild by clicking here.
Terrain Work Receives Honorable Mention in Incheon Geodam International Competition
Terrain Work’s proposal “An Ecology of Knowledge and Culture” was recently awarded Honorable Mention for the Incheon Geomdan Museum Library Complex Cultural Facility International Design Competition. The proposal, in collaboration with Strange Works Studio and Emergent Studio, was inspired by the Korean landscape spanning from the Mountains to the Sea. The proposed landscape reveals the complex and diverse ecotonal landscapes that exist within the Korean Peninsula. It also mediates between repositories for three distinct forms of information – the library (recorded information), the museum (cultural objects embedded with information), and the landscape (biological information), allowing residents to engage with Incheon Geomdan’s intellectual, historical, and biological history. To learn more about “An Ecology of Knowledge and Culture” click here.
Terrain Work Selected to Exhibit in the Seoul Biennale for Architecture and Urbanism
Terrain Work with collaborative partners - MMK+, Strange Works Studio, Emergent Studio, and Dongsei Kim, NYIT - were recently selected from an international competition to exhibit in the 2023 Seoul Biennale for Architecture and Urbanism : A 100 Year Master Plan. Our proposal, Productive Han-Ga-Ram: Han River as Madang of Culture and Ecology, reimagines the Han River as Seoul’s central public space by transforming its thirty bridges and river front into a productive and performative infrastructure that helps to mitigate the effects of climate change while offering new venues for public recreation. Learn more about the Seoul Biennale here and stay tuned for our proposal in September!
Terrain Work Makes West Harlem New Home!
Terrain Work has relocated our office to the historic Mink Building located in West Harlem! Our new neighborhood is the Manhattanville Factory District located near Columbia University, City College, and the 125th Street corridor, Harlem’s most important commercial and cultural zone. We made the move to West Harlem after working the past several years on a series of projects in the neighborhood with Janus Property Group to bring publicly accessible open spaces to the Manhatanville Factory District. We are thrilled to make West Harlem our new home in such a vibrant and culturally rich neighborhood!
HAPPY 2023 FROM TERRAIN WORK!
From all of us at Terrain Work we wish you a happy and healthy New Year in 2023! We look forward to what the new year brings with all of our friends, collaborators, and clients.
Hudson Commons Wins Urban Land Institute NY Award For Excellence in Development
We are proud to share that our Hudson Commons project in NYC with KPF Architects and Cove Property Group was the recipient of the Excellence in Office Development Award for the Urban Land Institute (ULI) of New York. Terrain Work’s landscape for Hudson Commons, creates a landscape that views the Manhattan skyline as an integrated topography full of peaks and valleys embedded in its underlying geology. This ‘Urban Mountain’ changes in composition and experience as it climbs up from the ground to the peak of the structure. Plant communities, strata, and programs are all linked to their corresponding elevation within the Hudson Commons giving shape to a distinctly different set of experiences as the various terraces climb up the 17 story structure. Learn more about the Hudson Commons Project.
Taystee Ribbon Cut with Governor Kathy Hochul
Terrain Work was delighted to be part of the ribbon cutting ceremonies for Taystee in West Harlem recently. Governor Kathy Hochul and Lt. Governor Brian Behjamin led the festivities along with Janus Property partners Scott Metzner and Jerry Salama. "The completion of the Taystee Lab Building is a milestone in the next chapter of Harlem's rich history," Governor Hochul said. "Anchoring the Manhattanville Factory District, the new state-of-the-art building will serve as the home for innovative companies developing the next generation of life science research and technology. As we continue to build back from the pandemic, today's investments that support our life science infrastructure will ensure that we are better prepared, better equipped and more resilient in the future."
Terrain Work is honored be part of this transformative project in West Harlem’s Manhattanville Factory District with Janus Property and LevenBetts Architects. For more on the Taystee landscape click here.
Terrain Work Creating New Civic Spaces at Capitol Crossing in Washington D.C.
Terrain Work is excited to reveal the landscape design for Capitol Crossing Center Block in Washington D.C. The landscapes of the Capitol Crossing Center Block each express the unique qualities of the geological transect found in the region beginning with Appalachian Plateau, cutting through the Blue Ridge and Piedmont regions, and ending at the Coastal Plains that surround Washington D.C. These outdoor spaces create a new civic realm in a mixed-use development above Interstate 395 with retail, a residential tower, and boutique hotel designed by Ennead Architects. For more about this project click here.
TERRAIN WORK COOKING UP LANDSCAPE FOR TAYSTEE SITE IN HARLEM
Terrain Work is working with Janus Property Group and LevenBetts architects to create a new landscape for the old Taystee Bakery complex in Harlem, New York. The Taystee development will establish a new connection from 125th Street to West 126th Street to become one of the defining landscapes in the Manhattanville Factory District.
The Janus Property Company has built a reputation for creativity, integrity and success, becoming a leader in transforming New York’s obsolete buildings and underutilized land into newly active and lively neighborhoods. Taystee is key anchor development in Janus’ one million square foot master-planned vision for the Factory District that will be a delicious addition to the community. Terrain Work is delighted to collaborate with Janus and their design team on this transformative project for Harlem.
Terrain Work Designs Master Plan for Wheels o' Time Museum
Terrain Work recently completed a new master plan for the Wheels O’ Time Museum in Peoria, Illinois. The museum houses an extensive collection of over 30,000 square feet of antique and collector cars, trains, airplanes, tractors, fire trucks, and bicycles. In addition it recently acquired an innovative house from the 1930's constructed entirely from steel by the renowned industrial designer R.G. LeTourneau.
Terrain Work’s master plan for the museum incorporates the newly acquired Le Tourneau house into the museum campus to create an interconnected series of wheels that each contain different gardens designed to display museum artifacts and provide a variety of programmatic functions for the public to enjoy. To learn more about this project click here.
In Memoriam: Diana Balmori
It is with a heavy heart to share that on November 14th, 2016, Diana Balmori passed away. Diana was a mentor, teacher, and confidant to many people over the years, including me. She always made time for the intellectually curious, whether it was a nascent student of landscape architecture or an established contemporary. Her influence was broad and wide-ranging, and her passion for landscape as a medium that could transform the way we live and interact with nature was second to none.
For five years we spent countless hours together, both working in her office as well as teaching at Yale. When I first came to work in her office in early 2011 it was unlike any other environment that I had experienced in the past, both professional or academic. From the outset there was a relentless fervor and zeal placed on how to draw and how the process of drawing played a fundamental role in seeing and conceptualizing landscape. This idea of drawing was not limited to a particular instrument – computer, pencil, pen, etc. - nor was it exclusive to a particular medium – drawing, painting, collage, physical models, dioramas, digital models, film, video. It was wide open. Experimentation was always encouraged and a fundamental part of her work. I once heard the saying, “To draw is to see the world with your eye, mind, and your heart.” Diana embodied this approach and used it to push the boundaries of envisioning landscape. By doing so, she moved the discipline and discourse of landscape forward. Among her many accomplishments perhaps one of the most impactful and enduring qualities she instilled in me, and I suspect many others working in her office through the years, was the ability to see landscape anew.
The profession of landscape architecture has lost a visionary, but beyond that, many of us have lost a mentor, colleague, friend, and family member. Diana will be missed, but her ideas will live on in the people and places she inspired. A link to her obituary in the NY Times can be found here. Image courtesy of Balmori Associates
Theodore Hoerr, Founding Principal
Terrain Work
University of Iowa Hancher Auditorium in the News
The University of Iowa Hancher Auditorium was recently featured on ArchDaily. The landscape for Hancher consists of an innovative water management system that captures, cleans, and infiltrates water from the surrounding area into the ground. This reduces runoff into the the Iowa River to help mitigate future flooding events, and create a more resilient riverfront landscape. Theodore Hoerr led the landscape architectural design of this project while a Principal at Balmori Associates in collaboration with Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects. To learn more about how this project transformed the Art Campus landscape on the banks of the Iowa River click here.
Terrain Work to Design New Eco(tonal) Community in Illinois
Terrain Work has begun the urban design and planning for a new 33 acre Eco(tonal) Community on the site of a former tree production nursery in Central Illinois. The community will be organized around the ecotones of several landscape types: Deciduous Hardwood Forest, Shortgrass Prairie, and Littoral. A central wildlife corridor creates a link for both species and residents to move between an adjacent hardwood forest, and a shared open space surrounding a small lake. A water management plan for the community will capture and treat all runoff generated on the site through a network of bio-cells distributed throghout the community. Visit us at terrainwork.com for updates on this project.
Hancher Auditorium Ribbon Cutting & Open House
The University of Iowa is excited to announce the ribbon cutting and open house for Hancher Auditorium is scheduled for September 9th at 3:00pm! Theodore Hoerr led the design of this project while a Principal at Balmori Associates in collaboration with Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects. To learn more about how this project is transforming the Art Campus landscape on the banks of the Iowa River click here.
Tianjin Academy of Fine Arts in the News
The proposal for the Tianjin Academy of Fine Arts campus expansion in collaboration with Ennead Architects was recently featured on ArchDaily. The proposal hybridizes two archetypal landscapes, the campus and the park, cultivating a new landscape where the academy is also viewed as a civic expression of the city. Theodore Hoerr led the design of this project while he was a Principal at Balmori Associates. To learn more about the landscape design for the Tianjin Academy of Fine Arts click here.
SoHo Tower in the News
SoHo Tower was recently in the news after architect Renzo Piano Building Workshop unveiled the design scheme for this residential development in Manhattan. Theodore Hoerr led the landscape architectural design for this project while a Principal at Balmori Associates. Find out more about SoHo Tower landscape at terrainwork.com.
Bogota Landscape Construction Underway
The Ciudad Empresarial Sarmiento Angulo, an urban project spanning three city blocks in the heart of Bogota, Colombia, has begun construction. Located on Avenida El Dorado, the city's main cultural axis, the project marks the midpoint between Bogota’s historic downtown and Bogota International airport. The project will create a new cultural district in the city that links together three districts of the city: Centro Administrativo Nacional, Ciudad Salitre Orientale and Quinta Paredes. Find out more about the Ciudad Empresarial Sarmiento Angulo, which was led by Theodore Hoerr while a Principal at Balmori Associates.
School's in Session
Beginning today Theodore Hoerr will be teaching two courses in the Department of Landscape Architecture at the Rhode Island School of Design during the Spring term: Site, Ecology, and Design with Emily Vogler and Plants and Design with Adam Anderson. Follow his updates on instagram and twitter during the semester.