Miguel Rosales

Updated on Nov 19, 2023

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Occupation Architect Name Miguel Rosales		Practice Rosales + Partners Role Architect

Born 1961 Guatemala City, Guatemala Alma mater Massachusetts Institute of Technology Universidad Francisco Marroquin Education Massachusetts Institute of Technology Projects Leonard P. Zakim Bunker Hill Memorial Bridge Structures Leonard P Zakim Bunker Hi, Longfellow Bridge, Woodrow Wilson Bridge Similar People Christian Menn, Leonard P Zakim, Theodore Zoli, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Woodrow Wilson

Miguel Rosales, president of Rosales + Partners and bridge architect, discusses bridges, 04/26/13

Miguel Rosales (born 1961 in Guatemala) is president and principal designer of Rosales + Partners, a transportation architecture firm based in Boston, Massachusetts. He is an architect specialized in bridge aesthetics and design, with more than 25 years of experience in urban design and bridge architecture. Some examples of these bridges include; Phyllis J. Tilley Memorial Bridge, Christina and John Markey Memorial Pedestrian Bridge, and Liberty Bridge at Falls Park on the Reedy River.

Early life and education

Rosales was born in Guatemala City, Guatemala, where he received a degree in architecture at the Universidad Francisco Marroquin. In 1985, he enrolled at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to study Urban and Environmental Design, obtaining a SMArchS (Master of Science in Architecture Studies) degree in 1987. He later completed engineering studies related to bridge design when he received grants from MIT to study Swiss bridges, from the AIA/American Architecture Foundation to study Swiss and Spanish bridge structure, and from the National Endowment for the Arts to study Infrastructure Design for the Future. As part of the grants’ activities he visited the following cities in the late 1990s to conduct research and documentation related to transportation and bridge design: Barcelona, Spain; Zurich, Switzerland, and Seattle, Washington.

Career

Rosales’ career has largely been dedicated to bridge and infrastructure design in the United States. He initially worked with pioneering Swiss engineer and bridge designer Christian Menn, and from 1988 to 1996, Rosales served as the lead architect and urban designer for the Leonard P. Zakim Bunker Hill Bridge over the Charles River. This highly-visible structure is part of the Central Artery/Tunnel Project, informally called "The Big Dig". During his tenure at this high-profile project, he mainly focused in improving the appearance of the highways and bridges as part of the multi-billion project that helped transformed downtown Boston by removing an elevated highway and by opening access to the harbor.

In 1997, he started his own independent architecture and engineering professional practice, Rosales + Partners, in Boston. Soon after the formation of his firm, he was involved in the design of three award-winning bridge projects: Liberty Bridge at Falls Park on the Reedy in Greenville, South Carolina, completed in 2004, Puente Centenario, over the Panama Canal, Panama, completed in 2004 and Woodrow Wilson Memorial Bridge over the Potomac River in Washington DC, completed in 2008. These bridges have received multiple awards and widespread recognition.

Recently completed projects include the Phyllis J. Tilley Memorial Bridge over the Trinity River in Fort Worth Texas, completed in 2012 and the Christina and John Markey Memorial Pedestrian Bridge, completed in 2013.

Personal life

Rosales lives on Mount Vernon Street in the historic Beacon Hill neighborhood of Boston, not far from the Zakim Bridge, the Longfellow Bridge, and several other bridges he has designed. He is active in the Beacon Hill Civic Association Tree Committee, which he co-chairs with John Corey as of 2015. Working together with the Beacon Hill Garden Club and the Boston Parks Department, the Tree Committee was able to fund and recruit volunteer staff to install protective iron tree guards and decorative plantings around tree pits in the sidewalks of Charles Street, the main thoroughfare of Beacon Hill. Rosales and Corey were originally inspired in 2009 by a visit to Jermyn Street in London, England, famous for its fashionable men's wear shops and other retail stores.

Recognition

Miguel Rosales has received international recognition for his iconic bridge aesthetic and designs. Some of the awards he has received are for the following bridges: Woodrow Wilson Memorial Bridge, Liberty Bridge, I-235 Pedestrian Bridge, Puente Centenario, Leonard P. Zakim Bunker Hill Bridge. Earlier in his career, Rosales received the P/A Young Architects Award in 1993, published in Progressive Architecture. In 1993, he received an AIA Urban Design Award of Excellence, for his "Plan for Charles River Crossing/Interchange, Central Artery/ Tunnel Project".

Completed projects

Puente Centenario, Panama Canal, Panama

Leonard P. Zakim Bunker Hill Bridge, Boston, Massachusetts

Liberty Bridge at Falls Park on the Reedy River, Greenville, South Carolina

George Washington Carver Bridge, Des Moines, Iowa

I-235 Pedestrian Bridges, Des Moines, Iowa

Edna M. Griffin Memorial Bridge

40th Street Pedestrian Bridge

44th Street Pedestrian Bridge

East Locust Street Streetscape Improvements, Des Moines, Iowa

Woodrow Wilson Memorial Bridge and Maryland Interchange, Washington, DC

Port Columbus Airport Crossover Taxiway Bridge, Columbus, Ohio

Phyllis J. Tilley Memorial Bridge, Fort Worth, Texas

Christina and John Markey Memorial Pedestrian Bridge, Revere, Massachusetts

Current projects

As of 2015, Rosales is designing the following bridges:

Massachusetts: North Washington St. Bridge at Boston Harbor New Charlestown-North End bridge in the works; Boston Esplanade Pedestrian Bridge over Storrow Drive connecting to Esplanade Park and Charles River; Leverett Circle Pedestrian Bridge, connecting to Science Park (MBTA station) near the Boston Museum of Science and the West End neighborhood; restoration and rehabilitation of the Longfellow Bridge over the Charles River; and the Fore River Movable Bridge, in Quincy. In addition, Rosales has designed a new lighting scheme for the Harvard Bridge near MIT, which has secured $2.5 million in funding from an anonymous donor, and is expected to be installed as of December 2015.

Ohio: Brent Spence Bridge Replacement, Cincinnati, Ohio. The Lakefront Pedestrian Bridge connecting from downtown Cleveland to the lakefront, the Wendy Park Pedestrian Bridge and the North Coast Harbor movable pedestrian bridge next to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, at the lakefront.

Texas: Three Trinity River Vision Bridges in downtown Fort Worth and the University of Texas College of Communication Moody Pedestrian Bridge, in Austin.

Washington: The Marion Street Pedestrian Bridge over new Alaskan promenade next to Coldman Dock Ferry Terminal in Seattle’s waterfront.

Minnesota: Bruce Vento Regional Trail Pedestrian Bridge next to the Mississippi River in St. Paul and restoration of Como Park Pedestrian Bridge.

Maine: The Gut Bridge, in South Bristol.

Proposed projects

Massachusetts: Science Park footbridges, next to the Boston Museum of Science. If built, these two footbridges would close a gap in the "Charles River bridge circuit", allowing pedestrians to walk or run next to the river rather than alongside traffic congestion on a nearby road.

References

Miguel Rosales Wikipedia

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