City releases RFP for Hudson Yards park.

The New York City Department of Design and Construction and the Hudson Yards Development Corporation issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the design of the four-acre Hudson Park and Boulevard and the creation of a streetscape plan for the Hudson Yards area on Manhattan's West Side.

Hudson Park and Boulevard will be an approximately four-acre system of broad, tree-lined parks and open space and an adjacent street that will be constructed between 10th and 11th avenues from West 33rd to West 39th streets. Hudson Park and Boulevard will be aligned directly north of the approximately six-acre open space that will be developed on the Eastern Rail Yard. Phase I of the project, which extends from West 33rd Street to West 36th Street is scheduled to be complete by 2013.

The park and boulevard, a fundamental element of the new Hudson Yards neighborhood, will create open space, facilitate access to new development and create city blocks suited to the demands of the new neighborhood. It will provide much needed open space in an area that is underserved today and offer opportunities for recreation in an area where none presently exist.

"This is an extraordinarily rare opportunity to create a large and dynamic park in Midtown Manhattan," said Robert C. Lieber, New York City deputy mayor for economic development. "This park and boulevard is a critical element in New York City and New York State's plan to transform the Hudson Yards into a vibrant, pedestrian-friendly and transit-oriented mixed-use district."

Hudson Park will extend from West 33rd to West 39th streets and will provide open space for residents, workers and visitors in the Hudson Yards area. Hudson Boulevard will extend from West 33rd to West 38th streets on the east side of Hudson Park and from West 35th to West 38th streets on the west side of Hudson Park. The RFP seeks a multi-disciplinary team including architects, landscape architects, urban designers, engineers, public artists or arts organizations. Phase 1 of the project for Hudson Park and Boulevard will include full design and 100% construction drawings, Phase two will include schematic design of the project.

For the Hudson Yards area streetscape, the RFP calls for full design of streetscape components and a streetscape plan for the area bounded by 10th and 11th avenues and West 33rd and West 36th streets and for the north and south sides of West 33rd and West 34th streets between 11th and 12th avenues.

The RFP also advises that the Hudson Park and Boulevard design and Hudson Yards streetscape plan should address environmental sustainability goals. Plans should promote energy efficiency, limit energy waste and use materials and resources efficiently. Plans should also seek to incorporate trees and landscape to reduce urban heat build up and improve air quality, while also integrating storm water management planning and using water-efficient landscape design, where possible.

The design of Hudson Park and Boulevard and the Hudson Yards streetscape should reflect and recognize the overall Hudson Yards Development Program, including the Hudson Yards Special District of the City's Zoning Resolution, and the location, scale, and design of anticipated new private development.

In particular, designs must address the adjacency of the open space to be located on the Eastern and Western Rail Yards. Taken together, the Rail Yard's open space and Hudson Park and Boulevard will comprise the major public spaces of the Hudson Yards area.

The RFP was released jointly by the New York City Department of Design and Construction, the Hudson Yards Development Corporation, New York City Department of Parks & Recreation, the New York City Department of City Planning and the New York City Department of Transportation. Collectively, these groups will form the Selection Committee that will manage the design competition.