Located in the small Philadelphia neighborhood of East Falls, the 'Inn Yard Park Bridge' consists of a sunken park and a bridge elevated above the park. The park is 'eroded' into the earth, giving people a place to stop and enjoy Philadelphia's beautiful Schuylkill River while quick moving traffic passes above their heads.

The project description called to create a bridge across Fairmount Park's Schuylkill River. Our proposal however, focused on what we believed to be a more culturally relevant 'bridge' -- bridging the community of the East Falls to the river (rather than across it). The concept of a raindrop was used to guide the design throughout the project. Metaphorically the community was imagined to be flowing down the existing streets, getting closer and closer to the river. Eventually the people would arrive at, and intertwine with, the river. Conceptually this would be simple, but realistically there was a large fast moving street that would block people from stopping to enjoy the river front. We addressed this challenge by 'eroding' the park down to the water level and then designing a bridge to let traffic pass above. In addition to allowing cars to pass above, the bridge become housing for a Farmers Market and Coffee Shop below.

The bridge was created of an exposed concrete skeleton, ornamented with bamboo rods and illuminated resin panels which would play with light and shadows as the pay progressed. The landscaping of the park was designed so that as the tide rose and fell, different areas of the park would fill with water, allowing for specifically designed paths and experiences to emerge as the tide fell.