Allegheny Riverfront Park facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Allegheny Riverfront Park |
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| Type | Municipal Park |
| Location | South Shore, Allegheny River, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |
| Created | 1998 |
Allegheny Riverfront Park is a cool park located right along the Allegheny River in Downtown Pittsburgh. It's a special place where you can enjoy nature and views of the city. This park is part of a bigger project called the Three Rivers Park. This project aims to create a continuous green path along Pittsburgh's rivers. Other parts of this project include North Shore Riverfront Park and Point State Park.
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Exploring Allegheny Riverfront Park
This park stretches between the Ninth Street Pier and the Fort Duquesne Bridge. It has two long walking paths, each about 4,000 feet long. These paths run along the river. They are on either side of the busy 10th Street Bypass.
The lower path is right at river level. It opened in 1998. The upper path was finished a few years later in 2001. Three famous bridges in Pittsburgh cross over the park. These are known as the Three Sisters bridges. They include the Roberto Clemente Bridge, the Andy Warhol Bridge, and the Rachel Carson Bridge.
How the Park Was Created
The idea for riverfront parks in Downtown Pittsburgh is quite old. It first came up in 1911. A famous landscape design firm, the Olmsted Brothers, suggested it. The idea was brought back to life in the early 1990s. This happened when the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust made a plan for the Cultural District. They wanted a park to be the northern edge of this district.
Designing a Unique Park
The Cultural Trust asked a team to design the new park. This team included artists Ann Hamilton and Michael Mercil. They also worked with landscape architect Michael Van Valkenburgh. He is a professor at Harvard Graduate School of Design. His company, Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates (MVVA), also helped.
The park's design had some challenges. It had two parallel spaces. Highways cut through them. The ground levels were very different. Also, the area would flood sometimes. But these challenges actually made the design stronger. The team created a very creative and successful park.
Awards and Recognition
Allegheny Riverfront Park has received awards for its design. In 2002, it won a Design Merit Award from the ASLA. It also received a Places/EDRA Place Design Award. These awards show how special and well-designed the park is.
Images for kids
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Allegheny Riverfront Park
