The designers came to the Coliseum last Friday in freshly pressed suits, ready to present their visions for the future "water" mark of St. Petersburg. A mostly older crowd was in attendance, but the audience members who mattered most were the five jurors who, come Jan. 20, will rank the three designs and submit their recommendations to City Council, which will announce its choice on Feb. 2. The $50 million budget draws from taxpayer dollars that had already been allotted for restoration and will now be used for the new design.
"Go take a look at the Pier again," juror and Councilmember Leslie Curran told the crowd. "It won't be there much longer."
The Wave (BIG/Bjarke Ingels Group)
Special effect: Bjarke Ingels says the look of The Wave was inspired in part by a scene in the film Inception in which the city skyline curls onto itself.
What's inside: The design incorporates the cycle of water into the circular structure, complete with a cloud room on the top floor. The interior space would be half that of the current pier, with areas for retail outside the Wave structure and along the wavewalk.
What we'd get for our money: The total cost for the structure and pier would be just under the $50 million mark for its first phase. The second phase includes a vast remodeling and redevelopment of the adjacent waterfront parks by the pier for an additional $12 million.
Beach, beach, beach: Ingels envisions the wave pier as an urban beach of sorts, with steps down to the water. Many onlookers were as puzzled as audience member Ken Young, who said, "Why would I go swimming in the bay when I have the world's best swimming in Fort De Soto?" (He also thought the design looked like "a UFO.")
Simple praise: "I love the simplicity and generosity of the wave," said juror Stanley Saitowitz, designer of the Tampa Museum of Art.
Slim shady: The lack of shade along the pier concerned juror Susan Fainstein, professor of architecture at Harvard. "So there is no shade at all?" she asked. "At the current pier, one of the reasons people don't go is because it is hot and glaring." According to BIG team member and local architect Tim Clemmons, built-in shade along the pier was cut from the plan in order to meet the budget.
The Lens (Michael Maltzan Architecture)
Loopy: "We thought of the pier not as a singular line but as a loop," said Maltzan. A series of loops, in fact, stretching from the waterfront into downtown and encircling Mirror Lake. The proposal incorporates bike and pedestrian routes, and the bulk of retail would be onshore in an area called "the hub."
Throwing shade: Maltzan and Tim Leader Studios worked with Dyson to develop a bladeless fan for the shade structures called "flowering trees." Shaped like palm trees and powered by solar, they would provide shade and breeze along the pier and perhaps the entire waterfront.
Coming and going: "What you experience on the pier [currently] is the same going out as coming back," Maltzan said. But the multiple loops and pathways would allow for a variety of different experiences.
Oyster bay: An inner pool at the end of the pier would incorporate an oyster bed as an eco-friendly means of cleaning the bay water.
What we'd get for our money: The first phase is estimated at $45 million, with an additional $9 million for sustainable oyster ponds and other elements. Phase one includes the parking already on the pier and phase two would add a dual-purposed amphitheater/parking garage with up to 4,000 seats.
Jury query: "This was a spectacular presentation," said James Moore, senior VP of HDR in Tampa. "As an urban designer, I appreciate the pull downtown towards pier and visa versa, and the detail of sustainability… Oysters to clarify water, brilliant." However, he asked, "You're presenting a vision that is 20 years in the making. Is that a leap of faith?" Maltzan's answer: "This is more of a menu of potential next steps."
The Eye (West 8 Urban Design and Landscape Architecture)
Basic instinct: Where the first two presentations packed an aesthetic and philosophical punch, West 8 went for a less, um, flashy approach, using postcards of the past and a homespun prop: a sea urchin with a popsicle stick attached to it. "The sea urchin inspired the design," Geuze said as the stick was passed among the jurors. "Popsicle stick + urchin, basically we were done."
Historic reference: West 8 was the only team that directly referenced the architecture of the original Million Dollar Pier, incorporating its oval archways into the new "eye" of St. Petersburg. The concept includes mangrove restoration and lampposts that function as landings for pelicans. The plan for the concrete "urchin" does not, however, include air conditioning.
More beachin': The design incorporates a small beach, around the end of the pier, called "shoal beach."
You Americans and your cars: In response to James Moore's question about the lack of parking in the design, Geuze (who is Dutch) replied, "Americans, it's part of their DNA to take the car and find parking. In our budget we could not include that."
What we'd get for our money: Juror and County Commissioner Ken Welch asked for specifics; it was determined that phases 1A and 1B of the design would include the bridge, the shoal and the eye for $45 million.
Jury query: "Does it replace the presence of the pyramid with something equal or better?" Saitowitz asked. That remained to be seen.
This article appears in Dec 22-28, 2011.