A CRITICAL NERVE
Connecticut Avenue Design Competition*

We recognized that this section of lower Connecticut Avenue was the critical nerve that connected the Mall to the city.

The primary idea driving our re-thinking was to provide a strong pedestrian street to connect the crowds of the Mall and Dupont Circle by means of a Ramblas, a tree-sheltered walkway down the center of the avenue. At the north end, Dupont Circle acts as a gateway for surrounding historic neighborhoods. At the south end, Farragut Square marks a similar gateway to and from the monumental core.

Acting as an armature to organize the unpredictable variety of spaces, the idea is to maximize and channel the pedestrian traffic of these two gateways by deliberately designing the streetscape such that any individual would instinctly recognize they had entered into a sophisticated and well-defined urban realm.

We wanted to create a destination where we might linger or meet a friend at a sidewalk cafe.

*Exhibited in the National Building Museum

Master Plan: Lower Connecticut Avenue

Plan: Dupont Segment

Plan: Longfellow Segment

Plan: Farragut Segment

Sections: Comparison of Existing and Proposed Efficient Sidewalks

Section: Typical Condition

Section: Dupont Circle

Section: Longfellow Triangle

Elevation: A Vertical Landscape Integrated with Stormwater Management