The Riverwalk is a mile-long public pedestrian promenade and activity center located along the south bank of the St. Johns River in downtown Jacksonville, Florida. This $8 million project, developed by the city of Jacksonville to provide a recreational amenity within its core business district, makes it possible for the public to enjoy the atmosphere and natural beauty of an important city resource - the river itself. Built adjacent to hotels, shops, offices, and restaurants, the "linear" park combines the features of a boardwalk and boat mooring facility, constructed on pilings, with landscaped open space areas. Integrated into the visual, people-oriented design are geometric shapes of varying function and size, including wide, angular terraces, gazebos, water features and colorful flag and lighting standards. ARCADIS was design consultant to the architect for this project, primarily responsible for engineering the structures, which were constructed of heavy timber, concrete and tubular steel. ARCADIS also supervised topographic and hydrographic surveys, contributed to the overall planning and landscape architecture of the facility, obtained all permits and provided full-time field inspection during construction. The American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) recognized the city of Jacksonville's Riverwalk project with a National Merit Award for Design, noting that the project "catalyzed downtown redevelopment" and "created a place of its own, for the public instead of any one developer."