The Gateway Arch of St. Louis, an international icon of stainless steel and concrete, was daunting in its realization as it was daring in its design. Yet, for all of the vitality of Saarinen’s Arch and Kiley’s Arch grounds, the modernist masterpiece remains in striking paradox to its setting. Already an impressive symbol, this urban National Park has yet to achieve its full potential as an active catalyst for urban cohesion and renewal in this most centered American landscape.
Invigorating a rich cultural and natural landscape such as this deserves a custom tailored team to address the unique and complex aspects of the project. “The City + The Arch + The River” demands the attention of inspired people relating to the fields of architecture, urban design and landscape architecture. Thus, the triad of design leadership is initiated and conducted by Behnisch Architekten led by Stefan Behnisch and Christof Jantzen in collaboration with Gehl Architects, and Stephen Stimson Associates.
Our work is strongly influenced by rigorous analysis and community engagement. In creating landscapes that express cultural values and an environmental ethic, great specificity is required to inform the vision and ideas that will transpire. The extended project team comprises a network of insightful regional designers, engineers, and scholars, with rooted connections to the city, its landmark and collective ecologies. These respected firms and individuals will work in concert with the lead designers offering unique cultural sensibilities as well as a degree of impartiality.
In considering the challenges of invigorating the Arch Grounds, the greater St. Louis region and the Mississippi River, our design approach intends to utilize a strategic series of design moves, evolutionary in nature, to arrive at a transcendent, holistic, visionary statement – a “catalytic main event” that resonates with an international community. The most significant part of any design rests in “civic sustainability” – the ability to sustain the present and future needs and ambitions of a larger, diverse community. This shared fundamental principle is articulated in the team’s work, which emphasizes the human dimension of the public realm.
Our experience has revealed that collective ambitions are always more easily reached where we find citizens who care deeply about their built environment. We are enthusiastically vested in creating a collaborative link between the local community and the design team, resulting in world class innovative solutions which respect and preserve the unique heritage while planning for the great future of the Jefferson National Expansion memorial and the greater St. Louis region.
