Noise Responsive LED Lights Will Fill NoMa's L Street Underpass

While construction won't begin until late 2015, that doesn't mean you can't get excited for NoMa's second up-and-coming underpass transformation. Out of 248 total submission forms, the NoMa Parks Foundation has selected the design concept for the underpass at L Street NE. L Street's Underpass design, titled "Lightweave," will have LED lights that appear to float from the ceiling and will "translate ambient sounds" from the neighborhood. What this means is that the intensity of the LED lights will be responsive to any nearby sounds that exceed 50 decibels, whether that be passing trains, cars, or even pedestrians. The installation consists of six lattice modules held up by columns which are spaced 16-feet apart. The installation was designed by the San Francisco-based design studio Future Cities Lab. The NoMa Parks Foundation will introduce the design and construction teams on July 13 at a community meeting at 12011 1st Street NE. According to the NoMa Parks Foundation website, the installation will be funded by a grant from the D.C. government.

Last April, the NoMa Parks Foundation selected the final design for the M Street Underpass. Similarly to the L Street Underpass design, the M Street Underpass will contain LED lights that will respond to the movements of cars. Construction won't begin until this fall.

Want more underpass makeovers? Expect more to come for the underpasses at K Street and Florida Avenue.

· Noma Parks Foundation Announces Second Underpass Art Park Finalist On L Street
[NoMa Parks Foundation]
· Future Cities Lab [Official Website]
· LED Light Rainstorm to Illuminate NoMA's M Street Underpass [Curbed DC]