ideas lab unveils proposals to save washington DC's sinking tidal basin

with the ‘tidal basin ideas lab’ exhibition, a team of designers unveil proposals to reimagine the sinking tidal basin at washington D.C.’s national mall. the team includes leading landscape architects DLANDstudio, GGN, hood design studio, james corner field operations, and reed hilderbrand. the area includes memorials to thomas jefferson, franklin delano roosevelt and martin luther king jr. as nearly 1.5 million people walk along the basin’s rim during the annual cherry blossom festival each spring, the increased car and foot traffic have driven parts of the tidal basin area underwater while the walkways flood daily.

current condition | image by sam kittner | courtesy of national trust for historic preservation

the design team at tidal basin ideas lab works toward solutions that are both viable and exciting to save and reimagine the washington DC landmark. the project addresses the historic site’s pressing need for critical repairs and improvements, including a crumbling sea wall and daily flooding. the five design teams explore diverse strategies to saving the washington D.C. tidal basin. the innovative proposals include reconfiguring the water’s edge, relocating the iconic cherry trees, creating new pathways and elevated vantage points, and embracing the ever-changing nature of the tidal landscape.

current condition | image by sam kittner | courtesy of national trust for historic preservation

james corner field operations

james corner field operations offers three potential ways to handle and mitigate rising water levels. first, to preserve the site with an escalated regimen of maintenance and engineering. second, to allow the site to flood, creating a landscape in which entropy is on display. third, to balance preservation with the acceptance of future instability and climate change by treating the memorials as islands within the tidal basin.

james corner field operations’ archipelago | image by james corner field operations

reed hilderbrand

reed hilderbrand focuses on the influential 1902 mcmillan plan for the development of the washington D.C. parks system and its monumental core. the proposal is guided by the idea of creating a ‘washington commons,’ a vast complex of recreational facilities. encouraging a variety of experiences, the plan features three pathways — an uplands cherry walk, where the cherished trees will be relocated, a memorial walk, and a marsh walk. a new land form, independence rise, accommodates rising water levels, while a pedestrian bridge connects back to the city.

reed hilderbrand’s capital overlook | image by reed hilderbrand with designdistill

DLANDstudio

DLANDstudio proposes new physical and visual connections that will reorient the flow of visitors and create new pathways through the basin. the proposal includes the construction of a land bridge between the jefferson memorial and the white house — forming a jetty in the potomac river off the lincoln memorial housing the relocated memorial to martin luther king, jr. — and cultivating sponge park wetlands, a reflective weir and green security wall to protect upland monuments, landscapes, and museums.

GGN

GGN envisions a dynamic series of incremental changes that will adapt the site to the environmental challenges of the future and give rise to a new cultural aesthetic. achieved over three stages between today and 2090, this adaptive plan will accommodate forecasted sea level rise and will integrate regional ecologies to bring an overdue, ecological point of view. monuments will be adapted, protected, or relocated to ensure the national importance of this collective space.

GGN’s walkway proposal | credit GGN

hood design studio

hood design studio proposes three ‘anthems’ — ‘tell the truth!’ seeks to replace romantic and baroque design with stories of perseverance and resilience. ‘let the waters be free’ restores narratives of how the wetlands were valued by indigenous and enslaved peoples. and ‘invention: making new things’ asks if the tidal basin can trigger a national ethic that centers on rebuilding our urban ecologies.