The City + The Arch + The River: Full Circle

Full Circle reconnects the city to the park and the park to the river, embracing the Mississippi River as its center. Capitalizing on the dynamic movements and infrastructures of the site, the design creates a linked sequence of public settings that weave together to enhance the vibrancy and layered identities of the park. The monumental civic axis of St. Louis is extended over the highway to connect the city to the park. Strategic improvements to the memorial grounds preserves the Gateway Arch. The expanded museum acts as a catalyst to bridge history and community, culture and ecology, integrating the site into a larger cultural network of the St. Louis region.  

The East St. Louis riverbank offers a dramatic contrast to the modernist icon created by Saarinen and Kiley. Full Circle redefines the landscape as a network of new earthworks, waterways, and paths that meander toward new settings for recreation and public life including the new river center and ecological park that restores the lost river ecologies. New connections between St. Louis and East St. Louis complete the loop. Eads Bridge hosts a new linear park and the piers of Poplar Street Bridge are leveraged to support a new pedestrian and bike route. Full Circle recovers narratives of culture, ecology, transportation, and trade to create one continuous experience.