Active recreation is a highly desirable element in cities rediscovering their waterfronts as places for living and enjoyment. As families move into buildings along former industrial areas. the need for sports courts, bike routes, playgrounds, dog runs, boat launches and skateboard parks arises. To respond to these needs the plan for The Hudson River Park created a number of piers that concentrated these recreational uses. Pier 25 opened November 2010 and Pier 25 opened in 2011. Four buildings were required to support dozens of planned activities they are expected to hold. WXY's group of hybrid buildings articulates the new uses of this segment of the Park: miniature golf and snack bar with Dock Master's office, utility and maintenance, a boathouse and restaurant with a floating deck, and a skateboarding facility combined with comfort station. The architectural vocabulary draws on the history of robust marine structures and garages. WXY reinterprets the pragmatic nature of utility building with sculptural gestures using scale shifts and a sense of playfulness. Angling rooflines and 3-dimensional signs animate the compositions. The set of buildings share a material palette that shifts in color and shape. They are all single story with the walls and roof zinc clad and equipped with broad overhangs for shade and shelter from the elements. Glimpses of hardwearing glazed brick at their bases and openings punctuate their components with vivid color. The restaurant building currently under construction is the only structure with an upper level; it serves as an open air deck for viewing of the waterfront and its plethora of activities and events.
