Ware Associates worked closely alongside other consultants on this project involving a new master plan and environmental documentation for a one-and-a-half mile extension of the Bay Trail. The client requested a bicycle and pedestrian bridge that would improve non-vehicular/motorized access to the Berkeley Marina, preserve open vistas of the waterfront, and encourage the flourishing ecosystem around the structure. Ware's 110-foot low-slung design reduces the number of support piers, minimizing impact to sensitive wetland areas, while a raised base allows plants underneath adequate access to sunlight.
Designed in conjunction with 2M Associates as the signature landmark for the San Joaquin River Parkway, the Lewis S. Eaton Pedestrian Bridge harmoniously spans the San Joaquin River, providing transportation, recreation, and educational opportunities for its users. The trail bridge offers a grand gesture to the parkway, and is visible from the bluff tops of Fresno and Madera County, as well as from Highway 41. It is designed in a way that protects existing native plant species and accommodates the river’s natural, historic patterns of flooding. The bridge uses a cable-stayed form, which minimizes the cost, the impact on the west bank, and confines the west side foundation to a small, clearly defined area. Cables draping over the tower and splaying down to support the approach deck provide an added sense of enclosure as users cross the 430-ft span. Guardrails help shape the form of the bridge as they wrap up from the structure below. The concrete deck widens while over the river, gently establishing a viewing area that does not interfere with pedestrian and bicycle traffic. It then passes under the concrete tower, creating a “gateway” to river vistas. As the ramps sweep around the tower and lightly touch the ground, a small gathering place forms in the shade of the tower.
In collaboration with a multi-disciplinary team, Ware Associates provided architecture and engineering services for Shoreline Park, San Mateo located along a two mile section of the San Francisco Bay. Ware Associates conceived, designed, and implemented several key architectural elements of the plan, including a new maintenance building, public restrooms, picnic/shade shelters at Ryder Park, and a 105-foot span bridge connecting pedestrians and light vehicles to newly restored wetland areas. To minimize cost and lessen the impact on the natural environment while satisfying the client’s wishes to provide a visual marker that could be seen from afar, Ware Associates chose a repetition of materials consisting of Ironwood decking, solid concrete bases, steel pipe structural sections, and curvilinear forms. The result is a seamless integration of the organic environment and the engineered encounter: the bridge’s graceful sweep echoes the curves of the marshes and creek within the coastline park, and the wood deck of the pedestrian bridge (cantilevered from a torsion pipe beam that spans between concrete piers) remains set back from its support, giving the illusion that the bridge is floating above the natural forms below.
Contractor: Robert A. Bothman, Inc.
Designed as an integral part of the Redwood Grove Bank Stabilization Project in Los Altos, CA, the Fiber Reinforced Plastic (FRP), ADA accessible footbridge spans 30 FT across Adobe Creek and extends 560 LF of boardwalk. Ware Associates, worked closely with Restoration Design Group, LLC, the Project Prime, and the City of Los Altos to design and detail a structural system that would least impact the sensitive root zones and fragile ecosystem of this redwood grove. An FRP structural system was chosen for it’s light weight, ease of transporting to the site, competitive cost, and long term durability. All existing native plants were protected in place and interpretive elements were included to educate park users in the design, features and benefits of the bank stabilization. All site areas disturbed during construction were restored with native plants grown from seeds and cuttings collected from the Adobe Creek watershed. Ware Associates served as structural designer and Engineer of Record for the pedestrian bridge and the related abutments and pier foundations.
The Wildcat Creek Daylighting Project restored the underground section of Wildcat Creek, replacing a concrete box culvert under the baseball field. The creek was relocated to a natural, open creek channel along the northern boundary of the Park. A paved walking trail will be provided next to the creek. The project will also install new and improved ball field lighting and reorient the baseball and soccer fields. Ware Associates, worked closely with Restoration Design Group, LLC and the City of San Pablo to design a new pedestrian bridge across Wildcat Creek, as part of the overall creek restoration project. Ware Associates served as structural design engineer for the pedestrian bridge and the related abutments and drilled pier foundations. The bridge itself is a Contech steel truss bridge with a 70 foot design span and an 8 feet wide wood deck.