Brooklyn Bridge Forest has won the Reimagining the Brooklyn Bridge international design competition beating more than 200 submissions from 37 countries.

Grimshaw is part of the design team led by Pilot Projects, along with Cities4Forests, Wildlife Conservation Society and engineer Silman.

The Van Alen Institute and New York City Council announced the winning proposal which reimagines the bridge as an icon of climate action and social equity, improving mobility while respecting the landmark structure. The historic wooden walkway is expanded using planks sustainably sourced from a partner forest, a community in Guatemala protecting 200,000-acre rainforest. A new dedicated bike path and reclaimed traffic lanes more than triples the space for active and low-carbon transit. Biodiverse micro-forests at either end of the bridge bring nature to the city, and serve as green spaces for underserved communities.

“Congratulations to the well-deserved winners of the Reimagining Brooklyn Bridge competition. I’m encouraged by all the bold ideas we received on how to re-envision this world-famous walkway, which has become difficult for pedestrians, cyclists, and tourists to navigate over the years,” said New York City Council Speaker Corey Johnson.

Grimshaw has committed to net zero carbon operations by 2020 and all of its design work will be net zero carbon ready within the decade.