Wallace Roberts & Todd
Encyclopedia
Wallace Roberts & Todd, LLC (WRT, formerly known as Wallace McHarg Roberts & Todd (WMRT)) is an urban planning, urban design, landscape architecture, and architecture firm based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
. WRT is a collaborative practice of city and regional planners, urban designers, landscape architects and architects with additional offices in San Francisco, Miami, Lake Placid
, and Dallas.
Founded in 1963 as Wallace McHarg Roberts & Todd (WMRT) by David A. Wallace
, Ian McHarg
, William H. Roberts, and Thomas A. Todd, the firm has 198 employees.
, the new capital of Nigeria, and completed design projects for Inner Harbor
in Baltimore
. It has also done waterfront projects for the cities of Norfolk
and Richmond
in Virginia
, as well as projects for Indianapolis, Indiana
, Honolulu, and Dallas. It redesigned Kakaako Waterfront Park
in Honolulu, and designed Hale Koa Hotel
and Fort DeRussy Military Reservation
in the Waikiki
area of Honolulu. WRT has also done a study of renovating the Ocean Beach in New London County, Connecticut
.
Wallace Roberts & Todd is drafting architectural plans
for three 400 acres (1.6 km²) parks along the Floyds Fork in Louisville, Kentucky
, which is believed to be the largest urban park
project in the United States.
and the National Endowment for the Arts
gave Wallace Roberts & Todd an Honor Award for its proposed design of the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail. The competition for the award included 300 entries, and WRT was one of eleven who received the award.
In 2000, Wallace Roberts & Todd received two awards from Waterfront Center for its role in planning the Hudson River Waterfront Walkway
.
In 2004, WRT received an Award of Honor from the American Society of Landscape Architects
for its design of parks near the Anacostia River
.
In 2008, WRT received the Charter Award from Congress for the New Urbanism
for its project titled "A Civic Vision for the Central Delaware".
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
. WRT is a collaborative practice of city and regional planners, urban designers, landscape architects and architects with additional offices in San Francisco, Miami, Lake Placid
Lake Placid, New York
Lake Placid is a village in the Adirondack Mountains in Essex County, New York, United States. As of the 2000 census, the village had a population of 2,638....
, and Dallas.
Founded in 1963 as Wallace McHarg Roberts & Todd (WMRT) by David A. Wallace
David A. Wallace
David A. Wallace, FAICP, AIA, PP was an influential urban planner and architect who founded the firm of Wallace Roberts & Todd with Ian McHarg....
, Ian McHarg
Ian McHarg
Ian L. McHarg was born in Clydebank, Scotland and became a landscape architect and a renowned writer on regional planning using natural systems. He was the founder of the department of landscape architecture at the University of Pennsylvania in the United States. His 1969 book Design with Nature...
, William H. Roberts, and Thomas A. Todd, the firm has 198 employees.
Design projects
Wallace Roberts & Todd headed the design of AbujaAbuja
Abuja is the capital city of Nigeria. It is located in the centre of Nigeria, within the Federal Capital Territory . Abuja is a planned city, and was built mainly in the 1980s. It officially became Nigeria's capital on 12 December 1991, replacing Lagos...
, the new capital of Nigeria, and completed design projects for Inner Harbor
Inner Harbor
The Inner Harbor is a historic seaport, tourist attraction, and iconic landmark of the City of Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Described by the Urban Land Institute in 2009 as “the model for post-industrial waterfront redevelopment around the World.” The Inner Harbor is actually the end of the...
in Baltimore
Baltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
. It has also done waterfront projects for the cities of Norfolk
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....
and Richmond
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...
in Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, as well as projects for Indianapolis, Indiana
Indianapolis, Indiana
Indianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...
, Honolulu, and Dallas. It redesigned Kakaako Waterfront Park
Kakaako Waterfront Park
Kaka'ako Waterfront Park, also known as "Point Panic Park", is a free public park south of downtown Honolulu, just off Ala Moana Boulevard at the end of Cooke Street. It was opened in November 1992 on the site of a former municipal landfill and consists of of grass-covered rolling hills adjacent...
in Honolulu, and designed Hale Koa Hotel
Hale Koa Hotel
The Hale Koa Hotel, which means House of the Warrior in Hawaiian, is an Armed Forces Recreation Center resort hotel located on Waikiki Beach and owned by the United States Department of Defense. It sits on the southeast corner of Fort DeRussy on the western end of Waikiki in Honolulu...
and Fort DeRussy Military Reservation
Fort DeRussy Military Reservation
Fort DeRussy is a United States military reservation in the Waikiki area of Honolulu, Hawaii, under the jurisdiction of the United States Army. Unfenced and largely open to public traffic, the installation consists mainly of landscaped greenspace. The former Battery Randolph now houses the U.S...
in the Waikiki
Waikiki
Waikiki is a neighborhood of Honolulu, in the City and County of Honolulu, on the south shore of the island of Oahu, in Hawaii. Waikiki Beach is the shoreline fronting Waikīkī....
area of Honolulu. WRT has also done a study of renovating the Ocean Beach in New London County, Connecticut
New London County, Connecticut
New London County is a county located in the southeastern corner of the U.S. state of Connecticut. As of 2010 the population was 274,055. The total area of the county is , including inland and coastal waters....
.
Wallace Roberts & Todd is drafting architectural plans
Floor plan
In architecture and building engineering, a floor plan, or floorplan, is a diagram, usually to scale, showing a view from above of the relationships between rooms, spaces and other physical features at one level of a structure....
for three 400 acres (1.6 km²) parks along the Floyds Fork in Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
, which is believed to be the largest urban park
Urban park
An urban park, is also known as a municipal park or a public park, public open space or municipal gardens , is a park in cities and other incorporated places to offer recreation and green space to residents of, and visitors to, the municipality...
project in the United States.
Awards
In 2011, the American Planning Association named Wallace Roberts & Todd as the recipient of its inaugural award, National Planning Award for Achievement in Planning, a recognition for its continual progressive and innovative planning practices. The American Association of Landscape Architects also recognized WRT in 2010 with its National Award for its influential body of work. In 1996, the United States Department of TransportationUnited States Department of Transportation
The United States Department of Transportation is a federal Cabinet department of the United States government concerned with transportation. It was established by an act of Congress on October 15, 1966, and began operation on April 1, 1967...
and the National Endowment for the Arts
National Endowment for the Arts
The National Endowment for the Arts is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created by an act of the U.S. Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government. Its current...
gave Wallace Roberts & Todd an Honor Award for its proposed design of the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail. The competition for the award included 300 entries, and WRT was one of eleven who received the award.
In 2000, Wallace Roberts & Todd received two awards from Waterfront Center for its role in planning the Hudson River Waterfront Walkway
Hudson River Waterfront Walkway
The Hudson River Waterfront Walkway, also known as the Hudson River Walkway, is an ongoing and incomplete project located on Kill van Kull and the western shore of Upper New York Bay and the Hudson River, implemented as part of a New Jersey state-mandated master plan to connect the municipalities...
.
In 2004, WRT received an Award of Honor from the American Society of Landscape Architects
American Society of Landscape Architects
The American Society of Landscape Architects is the national professional association representing landscape architects, with more than 17,000 members in 48 chapters, representing all 50 states, U.S. territories, and 42 countries around the world, plus 68 student chapters...
for its design of parks near the Anacostia River
Anacostia River
The Anacostia River is a river in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States. It flows from Prince George's County in Maryland into Washington, D.C., where it joins with the Washington Channel to empty into the Potomac River at Buzzard Point. It is approximately long...
.
In 2008, WRT received the Charter Award from Congress for the New Urbanism
New urbanism
New Urbanism is an urban design movement, which promotes walkable neighborhoods that contain a range of housing and job types. It arose in the United States in the early 1980s, and has gradually continued to reform many aspects of real estate development, urban planning, and municipal land-use...
for its project titled "A Civic Vision for the Central Delaware".