2017 Free Fall Baltimore New Public Sites Walking Tours

New Public Sites Free Fall Baltimore 2017

New Public Sites Free Fall Baltimore 2017

As part of 12th annual Free Fall Baltimore, New Public Sites is offering three exciting tours – Mondawmin Crossings, Inner Harbor Baltimore Drift, and Druid Hill Reservoir Interchange. The fall 2017 New Public Sites walking tours series focuses on a combination of interlocking issues: pedestrian safety, the state of Baltimore’s water infrastructure, and access to public space.

These tours are made possible with support from Free Fall Baltimore and the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy. Free Fall Baltimore is produced by the Baltimore Office of Promotion & The Arts (BOPA) and presented by BGE with additional support from The Abell Foundation, Atapco Properties, Henry and Ruth Blaustein Rosenberg Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Mondawmin Crossings bannerMondawmin Crossings

October 14, 3-4:30pm Click here to learn more and register

Greater Mondawmin is a collection of strong neighborhoods sharing an array of educational, recreational, and shopping opportunities. Unfortunately, residents are unable to safely walk or bike to our local amenities due to streetscape barriers like the dangerous highways that ring Druid Hill Park and Mondawmin Mall. Mondawmin Crossings will be an interactive walking tour exploring opportunities for improving how local residents connect with our many valuable community places.

Inner Harbor Baltimore Drift bannerInner Harbor Baltimore Drift

October 21, 2-3:30pm Click here to learn more and register

Baltimore’s Inner Harbor is a celebrated success of waterfront redevelopment, but its spectacular looks disguise a contested past and challenging present. Inner Harbor Baltimore Drift tour participants will discover the real stories of how powerful people, visionary plans, and community movements are still transforming the former industrial wharf into a premiere public space for all.

Druid Hill Reservoir Interchange

[Rescheduled] Nov 4, 2-4pm Click here to learn more and register

Druid Hill Reservoir Construction Interchange will explore the overlapping embankments and sidewalks to nowhere between the Jones Falls Expressway and the Druid Hill Park Reservoir. The tour will focus on the history of the the park and surrounding highways, and details about the current reservoir construction project. Along the way, we will also share about the community movement afoot supporting pedestrian safety improvements around the park.

Periscope Public Art for Central Ave

Periscope site perspective SE final

Periscope site perspective SE final

FGLA’s Interactive Periscope Public Art for Central Avenue approved by Baltimore City

The Baltimore City Public Art Commission approved FGLA’s public art concept for an interactive Periscope tower and plaza at the intersection of Central Avenue and Pratt Street. This work is the percent-for-art commission part of the Central Avenue streetscape project. The Periscope’s angled mirrors will make it possible for people walking by to see elevated views of the neighborhood. Its color, form, and integrated plaza are inspired by local waterways, including City Springs, Harford Run, and the Patapsco River. The 25’ tall Periscope will be constructed of cast-in-place concrete, colored plexiglass supported by a welded frame, and surrounded by a plaza of integral color concrete. Inscribed on the obelisk pedestal will be the names of the three local water bodies that makeup the watershed where the Periscope stands.

The triangle crossing at Pratt Street offers a unique opportunity for a truly public, plaza-like place along Central Avenue. The angled intersection provides panoramic views of Baltimore’s diverse pasts and futures. From this vantage one can see historical rowhomes, public housing in transition, public art, and ongoing development up and down Central Avenue. The view facing east frames City Springs school, which takes its name from a spring that once existed where its athletic field now lays. Synthesizing these views, Periscope will stand as an obelisk-like monument to water in place and pedestrian oversight. Inverting the hierarchy of Baltimore’s omnipresent blue surveillance lights, the tower will empower pedestrians with elevated views of their surroundings while colorfully evoking the water cycle of precipitation, collection, and flow.

Periscope will be fabricated and installed in 2019.

Falon Graham Land Art (FGLA) is the public art team of Falon Mihalic and Graham Coreil-Allen.

Follow our public art process on instagram and twitter: @falonland @grahamprojects #publicart4centralave #fgla

Periscope site perspective SE night

Periscope nighttime view facing southeast.

Periscope streetview with mirror reflection

Periscope street view perspective featuring periscopic mirrors reflecting a nearby building.

Periscope site plan

Periscope plan feature blue integral color concrete plaza.