Union Street Pedestrian Connection
Connecting downtown Seattle to the new and improved waterfront

The Union Street pedestrian connection is part of the overall Seattle Waterfront Master Plan, and is intended to provide better accessibility between Downtown Seattle and the proposed Waterfront Promenade. The connection will include two sets of pedestrian bridges, stairs, and elevators to create a direct and legible path. In addition to acting as a connection, the new structures will provide overlooks to the Puget Sound.

The Union Street project recently completed the 30% design phase.  As part of schematic design, the team extensively explored various planning and site options to determine optimum structure locations, while still meeting programmatic requirements for pedestrian traffic and enhanced wayfinding. Unifying the design of the connection with the design of the waterfront promenade also factored into the design exploration. The team also looked at a wide variety of structural and cladding options for the pedestrian bridge and elevator, with the goal of creating an elegant and honest structural expression.

Due to a variety of site conditions and entire project budget constraints, the City proceeded with the Western Ave to Alaskan Way connection only, which can be found here.

Project Information

CLIENT
City of Seattle
Seattle Department of Transportation

LOCATION
Seattle, WA

PROJECT TYPE
Urban Design

SCOPE
Preliminary Design

PROJECT TEAM
Schemata Workshop (Architect)