Construction Update: Little Island at Pier 55

Installation of the concrete pots is nearing completion at Heatherwick Studio’s Pier 55 park in the Hudson River. Located near the Meatpacking District and the High Line, the design of the 2.4 acre park features an undulating field of 132 pots with plantings sitting on 280 concrete piles. At the park’s peak, the pots rise 30 feet into the air and can weigh more than 90 tons. Four to six petals of lightweight concrete combine to form each of the pots. MNLA is overseeing the landscape design, which is inspired by the textures and colors of coastal Acadia National Park in Maine. The park will offer a 700-seat amphitheater for music, dance, and theater productions, along with numerous pathways and viewing platforms. Completion is expected in the spring of 2021.

Little Island from the future site of Gansevoort Peninsula.

Planting mockup.

Architect: Heatherwick Studio; Landscape Architect: Mathews Nielsen Landscape Architect; Client: Hudson River Park; Program: park; Location: Meatpacking District, New York, NY; Completion: 2021.