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Gateway Circle
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The urban plan of Annapolis was created by Francis
Nicholson in 1690. The street plan features two circles with radiating
streets to compass points, overlaying a 90 degree street grid pattern.
The circles are placed at the high points of the topographic landscape, one
for use by the seat of government and one for use by the church. Over
the years the city has expanded by fragmented street grids, and small parts
of the original Nicholson plan have been modified and lost. The city
had never expanded the original Nicholson plan in any deliberate, thoughtful
way.
Bohl Architects created the concept of a new circle as a natural extension of the original Nicholson plan. This circle solved several thorny urban design problems and created a new sense of place for the city. The irregular intersection of several streets had long been a traffic bottleneck and the area suffered economic fatigue. |
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 Proposed Gateway Circle |
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| A new circle modeled on Church Circle would solve traffic flow, create a defining entrance to the historic area of the city, and define the commercial zone of West Street, anchored on the ends by Church Circle and the new circle. The new circle would be located on topographic high ground, and the irregularity of the existing street intersections would allow for a natural and seamless extension of the historic urban plan of Annapolis, substantially increasing the pedestrian zone of the city. Bohl Architects worked closely with the City of Annapolis Department of Planning and Zoning and the Maryland Department of Transportation to develop the concept as an extension of the historic area of the city. Unfortunately, the circle was executed by the Annapolis Department of Public Works, and the concept was dumbed down to a small traffic circle with distant concern for pedestrian life and the unique nature of Annapolis ignored. |  Map of Annapolis showing original and proposed circles |
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