For the next few weeks, you'll have the opportunity to walk on some New Jersey and New York boardwalks that were damaged by Superstorm Sandy. They are featured in a project known as "Heartwalk" in Times Square; Situ Studio in Brooklyn was the winning design firm for the Valentine's Day-themed competition.

Heartwalk in Times Square
Heartwalk in Times Square features boardwalk wood from Atlantic City and Sea Girt (Ka-Man Tse)
loading...

Requests for project proposals came in November, when the storm was very much in the studio's consciousness.

"We were thinking about how Sandy really brought people together," said Wes Rozen at Situ. "It was an event where there were beautiful displays of humanity and resilience."

Rozen said Heartwalk features about 200 boardwalk planks from Atlantic City and a couple dozen from Sea Girt; the rest of the project's boards come from New York state. The studio was allowed by city officials to pluck wood from piles of Sandy debris or grab planks right from the damaged sections of boardwalk.

Rozen hoped, "This project will be a place where we can continue the dialogue around how Sandy affected all the communities in the Tri-State area, especially those along the coast."

Heartwalk features two ribbons of boards that meet to form a massive, illuminated heart, which visitors are welcome to step into. Rozen said some wood was planed to expose its red interior.

"We wanted to reach out to the edge of the city and bring that edge into the center," Rozen explained.

The project runs until March 10.

 

More From New Jersey 101.5 FM