Photo: Harley-Davidson
This year, American bike maker Harley-Davidson is turning 120. It’s an incredible achievement any way you look at it, and the company has big plans to properly mark the occasion, some of which will be unveiled on January 18. But the number has another significance as well: it’s how long it took Harley to realize it could have a bigger impact on the community that houses its decision-making center.
The bike maker’s main offices are located at 3700 West Juneau Avenue in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. That’s the place where back in 1903 William Davidson’s home was located, and from where his first two-wheeler rolled. A place of incredible importance not only for the company and the local community, but for the motorcycling world as a whole.
Given all that, you’d think Harley-Davidson would try to make the most of it, but it seems only now did it think of making an important landmark of the place for everyone to enjoy, not only employees. This week, Harley announced the start of a project that would turn “a central element of its Juneau Avenue campus headquarters into a public park” to be enjoyed not only by its employees, but by the general public as well.
In a bid to make “Harley-Davidson's presence in Milwaukee […] more relevant than ever before,” the company tasked design specialist Heatherwick Studio with the creation of the park, with the main goal being to turn a place that is mostly concrete at the time of writing into something greener and more enjoyable. Generally funded by The Harley-Davidson Foundation, the project will also accept sponsorships and donations to a total that was not announced.
The park will have a circular layout riddled with motorcycle driveways and turning circles, but also parking spaces. Pedestrians will make use of sidewalks, and at the center of the whole thing, a multi-use events space will be located. It’s a sunken structure 83 meters (272 feet) wide with tiered seating called The Hub, and it will be made from ten kinds of locally sourced bricks, but also wany-edge timber and patina-wearing weathered steel.
The park will be populated by some 120 native plant species, 20 of them trees and the rest perennials, including some considered sacred by the Forest County Potawatomi community.
As for Heatherwick Studio, the crew tasked with making Harley’s vision a reality, we’re talking about a British firm responsible for a number of buildings across the world, but also various spaces, including Shanghai’s 1000 Trees, New York’s Little Island, or Mumbai’s Towers of Silence.
Sadly for those who were thinking they’ll be able to raise a glass in the park in Harley’s honor as it turns 120 this year, that won’t be possible. The park will break ground this spring, but it won’t be ready before the summer of next year.
Given all that, you’d think Harley-Davidson would try to make the most of it, but it seems only now did it think of making an important landmark of the place for everyone to enjoy, not only employees. This week, Harley announced the start of a project that would turn “a central element of its Juneau Avenue campus headquarters into a public park” to be enjoyed not only by its employees, but by the general public as well.
In a bid to make “Harley-Davidson's presence in Milwaukee […] more relevant than ever before,” the company tasked design specialist Heatherwick Studio with the creation of the park, with the main goal being to turn a place that is mostly concrete at the time of writing into something greener and more enjoyable. Generally funded by The Harley-Davidson Foundation, the project will also accept sponsorships and donations to a total that was not announced.
The park will have a circular layout riddled with motorcycle driveways and turning circles, but also parking spaces. Pedestrians will make use of sidewalks, and at the center of the whole thing, a multi-use events space will be located. It’s a sunken structure 83 meters (272 feet) wide with tiered seating called The Hub, and it will be made from ten kinds of locally sourced bricks, but also wany-edge timber and patina-wearing weathered steel.
The park will be populated by some 120 native plant species, 20 of them trees and the rest perennials, including some considered sacred by the Forest County Potawatomi community.
As for Heatherwick Studio, the crew tasked with making Harley’s vision a reality, we’re talking about a British firm responsible for a number of buildings across the world, but also various spaces, including Shanghai’s 1000 Trees, New York’s Little Island, or Mumbai’s Towers of Silence.
Sadly for those who were thinking they’ll be able to raise a glass in the park in Harley’s honor as it turns 120 this year, that won’t be possible. The park will break ground this spring, but it won’t be ready before the summer of next year.
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