Hardberger Park Land Bridge

This is the first land bridge of this significant scale to be conceived and built in the United States. Hardberger Park was created as part of an international competition to design a park for the City of San Antonio. Previously operated as a dairy farm, the Park dedicates 75% of the site to preservation and restoration of the native landscape and 25% to low-impact recreation. The concept of the Park as a ‘cultivated wild’ interprets and integrates the rich cultural history of San Antonio with the diverse and resilient ecologies that are native to the region. Upon completion, the Hardberger Park Land Bridge will reconnect pedestrians and wildlife that are currently separated into two park parcels, split by the Wurzbach Parkway in San Antonio, TX. At 150’ wide, the bridge spans the six lane highway and will serve both people and wildlife moving through the Park. The vegetated corridor along one side will provide cover for wildlife alongside a trail and smaller scale bridge for pedestrian crossing. The bridge will connect the 311-acre park with endangered Oak Savana species restoration and a scrubland across the bridge. Two wildlife blinds, made of weathering steel, sit on sit on either end of the land bridge and offer pedestrians a place to rest and observe. The perforated patterns concealing those within the blinds are inspired by the site’s flora and fauna and created by local artists.

Collaborators
Rialto Studio, Inc.
Arup
D.I.R.T. studio
Cade Bradshaw
Ashley Mireles

Photography
Justin Moore