SOM Aim For Hudson Yards Win

A competition has been launched to find the best use for one of the most coveted pieces of land in New York right now, Hudson Yards.

With a larger footprint than the World Trade Centre site, a few singular towers have been proposed for the site but the Metropolitan Transportation Authority decided to put some of New York's best known developers to the test giving them just 48 hours to come up with plans to be displayed to the public.

Notoriously hard to please, the New York public seemed to have warmed to one entry in particular. Proving popular not only at the exhibition site but also on the forums and skyscraper dedicated websites of the net, the Brookfield Properties proposal which was put together by internationally renowned architects Skidmore, Owings and Merrill seems a sure winner of the competition already.

The proposal will see the land developed to be integrated with the new York street grid with pedestrianised areas, new streets created and the bulk of the skyscrapers lining each side of 11th avenue, this could be a sticking point as this area was designated as green space to reduce building work being carried out close to the transportation lines.

Including tower designs from leading architects such as Diller, Scofidio and Renfro and the Japanese firm Kazuyo Sejima & Ryue Nishizawa the proposal includes residential areas, a mall, cafes, restaurants and commercial towers. A hotel and retail complex also divides up the park area, which some feel results in the loss of the visual sweeping effect one giant park might give.

Although Brookfield has no tenants for the project like the other entrants have, (one entry would see the area turned into Rupert Murdoch's very own theme park) they don't see this as a draw back to the entry having confidence in their past track record.

Although the proposals have been thrown to the public it remains to be seen whether public opinion or the not so almighty dollar make the decision on the final winner.