Completed in 2022

Liacouras Walk South serves as critical connective tissue on Temple University’s center city campus. The landscape acts as a gateway for pedestrians walking to and from Temple’s academic buildings, student housing, public transportation, and the fabric of the neighborhood. The site was previously underutilized, with large expanses of paving used only for circulation, with no place to gather for conversations that unite, uplift, and educate.
 

In the site’s new iteration, DAVID RUBIN Land Collective aligned the main circulation path – “The Cut” – directly through the center of the site, establishing complementary social spaces on either side. Pass through becomes theater. Individuals and groups can choose where they feel most comfortable to facilitate dialogue and belonging.

On the west side, a new sloped lawn, backed by a curving bench, focuses attention toward those arriving from the south and those enjoying the opposite, complementary plaza. To the east, a plaza is defined by a sculptural fountain with jets that form the terminus to the walk from the north. Two cascades on this chevron-shaped element embrace the tables and chairs at which students, faculty, and community gather.

The inwardly-facing forms look as though they were once one, but the main walkway has sliced through them, seismically shifting them so they relate to both ends of the walk. “The Cut” is bookended by custom wood slat seats, offering places to see and be seen. Additional seating to the north is situated under preserved, mature trees that create smaller-scale opportunities to pause and converse. Temple’s Liacouras Walk South is both pass through and place – a vibrant landscape to gather, hang out, and connect.

Team members: Kelly Maiello Architects, David Mason and Associates, Urban Engineers, CMS Collaborative

https://land-collective.com/projects/temple-university-liacouras-walk-south/