McPherson Plaza

McPherson Plaza is located along Skinker Boulevard, a primary thoroughfare for Washington University students, faculty, and staff. The plaza’s renovated landscape simultaneously separates the residential zone from the commercial zone, while visually unifying the space by reducing obstructions. The plaza is spatially defined by low limestone seat walls, bike parking nodes and plantings. Proposed outdoor dining will further enliven the plaza.

[dtls] participated in the Skinker Corridor Conceptual Framework Plan which envisions a vibrant, multi-modal street environment that balances the needs of drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists. The study also advocates for the development of nodes of activity, such as new public spaces and commercial opportunities to activate the streetscape. Improvements include new lighting, reconfigured intersections, street trees, green infrastructure, traffic calming medians, and protected cycle tracks. These improvements are individual elements of a complete streets approach, which combine to provide safe passage for multiple modes of transport, increased green space, and an enhanced user experience with a distinctive character.

McPherson Plaza was one of a number of public space nodes proposed by [dtls] while participating in the North Skinker Framework Study. McPherson Plaza was designed to comfortably fit between the building’s main residential entrance and the reconfigured Skinker Corridor. As the study’s first built project, it begins to redefine Skinker’s potential as a vibrant, contemporary, multi-modal urban corridor.