Memory Banks
A New Ancient River
Competition | Dec 2013
Memory Banks is a proposal to restore the ecosystem of the Trinity River at downtown Dallas and to connect it with the Great Trinity River Forest. Blackland prairies and bottomland hardwood forests are re-introduced into the region to regain the quality of river life that existed before the building of the levees in 1930s. These two bodies of vegetation give the city a new oasis and connect it to the largest urban forest in the country. These spaces can also be used for recreation or simply to create a moment of respite from the fast and hectic pace of modern life. In order to extend the prairies to the city the highway system is consolidated and sunken in order to create seamless connections. Not only is the vegetation reprogrammed to this area but the original path of the Trinity River is reimagined as a typical lazy Texas river that bends and bows throughout the infrastructure to remind the city of its ecological heritage. In the forest along the banks multiple observation decks and storage spaces equip the forest to allow multiple activities to take place in the vegetation or on the river. The river in this project is widened and imagined as a lake with flowing water to allow clean/fresh water to cycle through the downtown area.
Memory Banks aims to bring the Trinity River’s ecology to the city by following historical traces to nourish the souls of the city and region’s inhabitants.
