Our project is rooted in the legacy and history of Bridgeport, a city that once thrived as a hub of heavy industry and manufacturing. Despite the aftermath of post-deindustrialization, we are committed to exploring the potential for reconnection and revitalization, particularly in the fragmented southend of Bridgeport. In addition, within this city of infrastructure, the lack of social infrastructure and meaningful green spaces are evident and problematic, especially through the underutilized Olmsted Seaside park.
The proposal are pocket parks consisting of customizable modular units that aggregate to challenge the traditional ideas of what a park can be, focusing on the reclamation of underutilized urban spaces for different species through the idea of “intuitive collaboration” threaded through the elements of “biodiversity”, “social gathering”, and “outdoor recreation”.
Our approach to designing for uncertainty is inspired by the concept of the “exquisite corpse,” where each collaborator contributes a piece to a larger whole without knowing what the final outcome will be. Similarly, we envision the programs/purpose of the park being created by the intuition of its users, with the modular units serving as flexible spaces that can adapt to changing needs and conditions. The design strategy aims to reclaim habitats, and provide public spaces that encourage connection, engagement, and revitalization in areas of the waterfront, multi-leveled carpark, and under the fly-over highway, and ultimately to breach barriers and connect the downtown of Bridgeport with the southend of Bridgeport.
