Designing the Newark Visitor’s Center meant bridging between opposing forces. On the one hand, there was a need to address the adjacency to the metropolitan center of NYC and its main transportation Hub – the Penn Station. This perspective implied the creation of a vibrant architectural event, which is capable of containing the centrality of Newark and of the reality of New Jersey as one of the most populated states in the US. On the other hand, there was a strong pull to blend with an image of a Garden State, or at least create a gateway to suburban America, which is perceived as a place of refuge, away from the metropolitan intensity.

The relatively modest programmatic scale of the project, led us do propose a fluid structure that can operate easily with different realities. Its dynamic shape blends with the speed and traffic flow of Raymond Boulevard, while at the same time it defines a smooth and organic edge to a recreational park on the river front. It’s ambiguous translucent and reflective appearance; demonstrates the different roles of which the structure can play within a complex urban environment.

The arrangement of the program is divided into three concentrated clusters. The arrangement is slightly modified in comparison to the suggested usages, in order to enable a flowing transition into the park trough commercial activities. This arrangement I believe may enable incorporating some of the activities of the center with future independent public activities on the lakefront park.