As part of an extensive resiliency plan to mitigate flooding in a Hoboken neighborhood, the team at Starr Whitehouse was challenged with designing a space that would transform a one-acre parking lot into a one-of-a-kind park. Starr Whitehouse Principal, Stephen Whitehouse noted that “Hoboken’s citizens wanted their new Southwest Park to relieve local flooding and provide diverse experiences around a central community gathering space.” With the commitment to sustainability at the core of this project, Starr Whitehouse, along with a team of engineers, designers and support from Unilock, set out to craft a resilient, community-oriented urban park.

The selection of design elements for this project were influenced by the end goal of creating a vibrant and livable space, while meeting the City of Hoboken’s demand for sustainability. The design needed to integrate green infrastructure, capable of managing large quantities of water from intense rain events. Permeable pavers became a key element of the design to ensure this requirement was met. Functionality, performance and available design options were all factors that were considered when making product decisions. Availability of paver shapes, colors, and textures were a key driver in product selection, so as to achieve a design that could play off of the surrounding architecture.

The resulting design of Hoboken Southwest Park employs three coordinated systems to reduce the negative effects of stormwater runoff, one of which is permeable pavers that allow for water infiltration through the pavers joints throughout the park. Unilock worked with the team at Starr Whitehouse to choose a permeable paver to incorporate into this system. “The shapes, colors, and finishes of Unilock permeable pavers provided many design options for the park plaza and paths,” says Stephen Whitehouse. Eco-Promenade® was chosen because of its ability to redirect rainwater back into the subbase and detention system through the open-graded joint material while keeping it away from sewer systems. The herringbone paving pattern was achieved with the plank shape paver and uses Series finish in three special-order colors. The colors play on the building hues in the neighborhood creating an interesting and vibrant space for all to enjoy. “Open now over two years,” says Stephen Whitehouse, “the park’s distinctive pavement still looks and performs as the design intended.”