Koning Eizenberg and James Corner Field Operations honored at the University of Pennsylvania's 2023 Weitzman Awards

This year’s Weitzman Awards at the University of Pennsylvania will honor Koning Eizenberg and James Corner Field Operations with two of their top honors during a public forum celebrating the most exceptional achievements in public design.

A class of 1986 alum, James Corner’s firm was selected for the 2023 Witte-Sakamoto Family Medal in City and Regional Planning over its Reimagine Middle Branch plan for the Baltimore waterfront. The plan calls for a comprehensive re-networking of connected parks, trails, and other programmatic elements along an 11-mile course following the Patapsco River into South Baltimore. The firm says it will “catalyze the intangible transformation of place” towards equity ends, with various capital improvements and the inclusion of employment and other policy initiatives driven by various community stakeholders.

They were joined by the 2023 Kanter Tritsch Medal winners Koning Eizenberg, who were honored over their firm’s long-held commitment to their “Our domain is Neighborhood” philosophy. Projects mentioned by UPenn include the 2012 and 2014 28th Street Apartments and Pico Branch Library, both in Los Angeles. They join last year's winner Diller Scofidio + Renfro on a list that includes MASS Design Group, Peter Eisenman, and TWBTA.

Speaking in a press statement, Dean Fritz Steiner said both “exemplify the opportunity for designers and planners, and policy makers and their constituents to think holistically and come together around shared values.”

The Weitzman Awards will take place at Fisher Fine Arts Library in Philadelphia on October 23rd of this year.