Learning Landscapes Spring 2017 by Andropogon Associates, Ltd

learning landscapes

spring 2017

an–dro–POH–gone \ N: a common field grass, is one of nature’s remarkable adaptations to stress and change in the landscape. Wherever the landscape has been disturbed, andropogon is one of the first field grasses to colonize the ground, providing a self-sustaining cover for the gradual return of our native forests. The economy and elegance with which these grassy meadows heal the wounded landscape aptly describes Andropogon’s goal in ecological planning and design, “to weave together the landscape of man and nature for the benefit of both.”

FIRM OVERVIEW

Founded forty years ago, Andropogon is a

100+ Completed Academic Projects

2 Fully Certified Living

Building Challenge Project

2 Living Building Challenge Projects in Design

9 AIA COTE Top Green Building

Projects

10 LEED Platinum Certified Projects

First K-12 School

LEED Platinum

First LEED Platinum Building in Washington, DC

2 SITES Certified Projects

landscape architecture and ecological design firm committed to the principle of “designing with nature,” creating beautiful and evocative landscapes inspired by the careful observation of natural processes and informed by environmental research. We have applied our ecological design approach to a broad range of sustainable site design, planning, ecological restoration, and innovative stormwater management projects. Our body of national and international work includes early examples of innovative design strategies that have withstood the test of time.

Andropogon’s ecological design approach has transformed many academic campuses. Our integrated systems design process is fundamentally collaborative, where we develop a suite of design strategies that address the multiple challenges of the site while leveraging the existing natural, cultural, and social assets of the site to create a memorable landscape experience.

Our landscapes work, providing multiple, overlapping,

ecosystem services, such as stormwater management, habitat creation, and engagement with nature.

Our landscapes teach, maximizing the opportunities for outdoor spaces to become working laboratories that serve as an extension of the classroom. Our landscapes connect, bringing people together in engaging spaces that provide fruitful ground for collaboration and celebration.

SERVICES LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE Site Analysis Site & Landscape Design Landscape Management Permit and Regulatory Preparation Construction Documentation & Observation Historic Preservation & Adaptive Reuse REGIONAL PLANNING Environmental & Land Use Planning Environmental Assessment Feasibility Studies Natural Resource Management Open Space & Trail Systems Community Planning & Facilitation SUSTAINABILITY STRATEGIES Site Selection Environmental Assessment Site Planning & Design Stormwater Management Brownfield Redevelopment SITES/LEED/LBC Documentation MASTER PLANNING Program Analysis & Development Mixed-use & Residential Development Institutional Visioning and Development Stormwater Management Ecological Restoration Brownfield Redevelopment Funding Strategies RESEARCH Post-Occupancy Evaluations & Case Studies Environmental Monitoring Soil Biology Analysis Social Monitoring Experimental Design Monitoring Protocols Adaptive Landscape Management Programs Public Outreach & Presentations Grant Writing & Technical Writing

INTEGRATIVE RESEARCH All too often, ecological design is claimed, but it is rarely academically rigorous and reflective. In keeping with our passion and commitment to sustainable landscape design, Andropogon launched the Integrative Research Division in 2012, which guides the succession of the firm into its 4th decade. Although evidence-based design and embedding the best, most recent scientific knowledge into our landscape practice has always been a critical step in our design process, this complementary division enables us to rigorously review our past and present landscape interventions to inform future projects and the overall design community. Research is deeply embedded in our design process in every project. In some cases, the Integrative Research Division engages in more in-depth research projects, which usually occur before or after the design process. Recent examples of such research projects include: •

Bartram’s Mile Biochar Meadow Research Plots, Philadelphia, PA

•

Kresge Foundation Complex: Post-Occupancy Evaluation, Troy, MI

•

Ecosystem Services Performance of Shoemaker Green. University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA

•

Loantaka Brook Preserve Gas Pipeline Biodiversity Study: A Look Back After 28 Years, Morris County, NJ

•

Feasibility of Native Species and Natural Communities on Green Roofs- SUNY ESF Gateway Building Green Roof, Syracuse, NY.

•

Chattanooga Runoff Reduction Standards Public Outreach- Compost Tea Workshop, Chattanooga, TN

•

Drexel Perelman Quad Behavior Mapping, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA

•

Soil Amendment and Test-Plot Studies for Various Seed Mixes, Moon Township, PA

“GREEN” PROJECTS AND AWARDS

shoemaker green, university of Pennsylvania

LEED PROJECTS

Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design, U.S. Green Building Council

Sculpture Building and Gallery Yale University, New Haven, CT LEED Platinum, with KieranTimberlake

Morris & Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation Environmental Center, Potomac Watershed Study Center, Alice Ferguson Foundation, Accokeek, MD LEED Platinum, with Re:Vision Architecture

Johnson Hall of Science, St. Lawrence University, Canton, NY LEED Gold, with Croxton Collaborative and KlingStubbins

Hillman Hall, Brown School of Social Work, Washington University at St. Louis, MO LEED Platinum, with Moore Ruble Yudell Gateway Center at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Syracuse, NY LEED Platinum, with Architerra U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters, Washington, DC LEED Gold, with Perkins + Will Phipps Conservatory, Center for Sustainable Landscapes, Pittsburgh, PA LEED Platinum, with The Design Alliance Moorhead Environmental Complex at the Stroud Water Research Center, Avondale, PA LEED Platinum, with m2 architecture Campus Center at Richard Stockton College of New Jersey, Galloway, NJ LEED Gold, with KSS Architects Kohler Environmental Center at Choate Rosemary Hall, Wallingford, CT LEED Platinum, with Robert A.M. Stern Architects J. Craig Venter Institute, La Jolla, CA LEED Platinum, with ZGF Architects Morris Arboretum Horticulture Center, Philadelphia, PA LEED Platinum, with Overland Partners McCormack Post Office & Court House, Boston, MA LEED Gold, with Goody Clancy

Sidwell Friends Middle School, Washington, DC LEED Platinum, with KieranTimberlake This is the first Platinum-rated K-12 school in the world and the first Platinum building in Washington, DC Student Residential Learning Complex, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT LEED Gold, with Hanbury Evans Wright Vlattas + Company West Residential Campus Initiative, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY LEED certified, with KieranTimberlake

LIVING BUILDING CHALLENGE PROJECTS

Certification by the International Living Future Insitute™

Phipps Conservatory, Center for Sustainable Landscapes, Pittsburgh, PA Living Building Challenge Certified, with The Design Alliance Morris & Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation Environmental Center, Potomac Watershed Study Center, Alice Ferguson Foundation, Accokeek, MD Living Building Challenge Certified, with Re:Vision Architects Global Flora Collection Greenhouse, Wellesley College, Wellesley, MA Designed to meet The Living Building Challenge Standard, with Kennedy & Violich Architecture Living Building Challenge Building, Georgia Tech, Atlanta, GA Designed to meet The Living Building Challenge Standard, with Lord Aeck Sargent and Miller Hull Partnership

“GREEN” PROJECTS AND AWARDS

SUSTAINABLE SITES INITIATIVE™ PROJECTS

Voluntary national guidelines and performance benchmarks for sustainable land design, construction ,and maintenance practices Phipps Conservatory, Center for Sustainable Landscapes, Pittsburgh, PA - Four-star rated certification, with The Design Alliance Bartholdi Park, United States Botanic Garden, Washington, DC - Pilot Project, with EwingCole Shoemaker Green, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA - Two-star rated certification

AIA COTE TOP TEN GREEN PROJECTS

Selected by The American Institute of Architects, Committee on the Environment.

2016 Center for Sustainable Landscapes, Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, Pittsburgh, PA, with The Design Alliance J. Craig Venter Institute, La Jolla, CA, with ZGF Architects 2014 Gateway Center, SUNY College of Environmental Science & Forestry, Syracuse, NY, with Architerra, Inc. 2008 Garthwaite Center for Science & Art, Cambridge School of Weston, Weston, MA, with Architerra, Inc. Sculpture Building and Gallery, Yale University, New Haven, CT, with KieranTimberlake

2007 Sidwell Friends Middle School, Washington, DC, with KieranTimberlake 2006 Philadelphia Forensic Science Center, Philadelphia, PA, with Croxton Collaborative Architects 2003 Cusano Environmental Education Center, John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge, Philadelphia, PA, with SMP Architects 2002 Adam Joseph Lewis Center for Environmental Studies, Oberlin College, Oberlin, OH, with John Lyle and William McDonough + Partners

OTHER “GREEN” AWARDS

Recognition from state and national organizations

Kohler Environmental Center, Choate Rosemary Hall-2014 Honor Award from AIANY Committee on the Environment, with Robert A.M. Stern Architects SUNY ESF Gateway Center-2013 Sustainable Design Award from the Boston Society of Architects, with Architerra, Inc. Stroud Water Research Center, Shoemaker Green, and Kroc Corps Community Center - 2013 Best Stormwater Control Measure Projects from the Temple-Villanova Sustainable Stormwater Initiative Kohler Environmental Center at Choate Rosemary Hall, Wallingford, CT - 2013 Award of Honor from the Connecticut Green Building Council with Robert A.M. Stern Architects Duke Farms, Hillsborough, NJ - 2012 Community Award from the US Green Building Council New Jersey Chapter with VITETTA Architects

SELECTED ACADEMIC PROJECTS HIGHER EDUCATION Wellesley College, Wellesley, MA Science Center and Amphibian Pond Restoration Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA Engineering Building with Goody Clancy Georgia Tech, Atlanta, GA Living Building Challenge with Lord, Aeck, Sargent Georgia Tech, Atlanta, GA Eco-Commons Concept Design with HGOR University of Mississippi, University, MS Site Design for STEM Building, Memorial Garden, and Walk of Champions with Ellenzweig SUNY Purchase, NY Green Infrastructure Site Design Pilot Project Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA Main Quad and Perelman Plaza Site Design Bryn Mawr College, Bryn Mawr, PA Park Science Center Site Design with Payette Wellesley College, Wellesley, MA Global Flora Project SUNY Environmental Sciences and Forestry, Syracuse, NY Academic Research Building with Ellenzweig Tufts University, Medford, MA New High Performance Science and Engineering Center with Payette Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA Fitness Center Addition at University Center with Cannon Design Washington University, St Louis MO Site & Landscape Design for Hillman Hall at the Brown School of Social Work with Moore Ruble Yudell Architects & Planners SUNY Environmental Sciences and Forestry, Syracuse, NY Gateway Building with Architerra Washington University at St. Louis, St Louis MO Site & Landscape Design for the New Parking Facility, Danforth Campus with BNIM Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA • Site & Landscape Design for the Rector Biology Building • Site & Landscape Design for the Stafford Greenhouse addition • Site & Landscape Design for the Athletics Training Center

SELECTED ACADEMIC PROJECTS • •

Site & Landscape Design for the Kline Fitness & Squash Centers Site & Landscape Design for the Soccer Complex

University City Science Center, Philadelphia, PA Innovator’s Walk of Fame Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA The Raymond G. Perelman Plaza University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA Shoemaker Green Duke University, Durham, NC • Chapel Woods Restoration • Transitional Landscape Study Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA Site Design, Lubert Plaza Temple University, Philadelphia, PA Health Services Campus Master Plan with Payette Washington University, St Louis, MO East Campus Precinct Framework Plan with Sasaki Associates K-12 SCHOOLS Central High School, Philadelphia, PA Master Plan for Campus with MGA Partners Thaden School, Bentonville, AR New STEM Campus Master Plan with Eskew, Dumez + Ripple Sidwell Friends School, Washington, DC Home/Campus Center Expansion with Ennead Drexel Public School, Philadelphia, PA Site Design for new K-8 School Princeton Day School, Princeton, NJ Lower School Site Design Seoul Foreign School, Seoul, Korea New High School with Ennead Choate Rosemary Hall, Wallingford, CT New Campus Center Northfield Mount Hermon School, Gill, MA STEM Building with Architerra

LANDSCAPES THAT

SHOEMAKER GREEN

UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA / PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA

Shoemaker Green is a 2.75 acre site located immediately east of 33rd Street between Walnut and Spruce Streets, and is a major component of the east-west connection between the central campus and Penn Park, serving as a new continuation of the Locust Walk / Smith Walk corridor. The site is surrounded by two of the University’s most iconic athletic facilities – the Palestra and Franklin Field, and serves as the “front doors” to these historic structures. Shoemaker Green’s program is mainly passive recreation, but the site has the ability to adapt for multiple events and activities with a wide range of scales, from secluded areas to eat lunch all the way up to staging areas for the Penn Relays and graduation. By way of carrying over the essence of College Green, while still retaining a character all its own, the site is the heart of Penn’s eastward expansion.

Shoemaker Green is a model for sustainable campus design. Through the innovative use of a variety of strategies and technologies, the design of Shoemaker Green has been optimized to capture and control stormwater from the site and surrounding rooftops, provide viable native plant and animal habitats, minimize transportation of materials to and from the site, and serve as a starting point for the development of a sustainable maintenance strategy for the University at large. Certified Sustainable Sites Initiative (SITESâ&#x201E;˘) Project, earning a two star rating.

UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA / PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA

LIVING BUILDING CHALLENGE + ECO COMMONS GEORGIA TECH / ATLANTA, GEORGIA

Georgia Tech is advancing sustainable design by transforming the heart of its campus through a fully regenerative design that gives back to the environment more than it takes. By promoting the stringent, netpositive standards of the Living Building Challenge, the University hopes that the project will become a catalyst for innovative sustainable design throughout the region. Georgia Tech aims to create a living laboratory where both the university and urban community can learn, through first-hand experience, how innovative water, energy, and food management solutions within the built environment can contribute to health and well-being. Andropogon is working with two teams at Georgia Tech, one led by Lord Aeck Sargent and the The Miller Hull Partnership for the Living Building Challenge project, and another by HGOR for the Eco Commons. These two projects seamlessly integrate the landscape with the architecture for optimal performance and design.

The overall design of the Eco Commons provides a clear, yet layered landscape experience through moments of openness and enclosure, and diversity in plant height and texture when moving through the site. Changes in canopy density create many different spaces for site exploration, while providing opportunities for the meadow to flourish. A comprehensive rainwater management strategy is imperative to mitigating runoff across the site. The multifaceted approach emphasizes managing rainwater where it falls while maximizing the collection, storage, and reuse of that water. In addition to managing rainwater from the Eco Commons, the site has the ability to become part of a larger regional green infrastructure system by feeding the Eco-Stream from multiple sources. The Eco-Stream is designed to accommodate varying influx conditions by mimicking natural stream systems.

The Georgia Tech Living Building Challenge project’s design strategy will provide social benefits (e.g. shade, food, beauty) and ecological services (stormwater management, carbon sequestration, wildlife habitat, pollinator foraging) while taking cues from the region’s local ecology.

• Water use and management for the building and site

The Living Building Challenge project is fully integrated with the adjacent landscape in order to meet the requirements to be net-positive for water, energy, and waste. The building and site work together to maximize performance of both:

• Building shading to increase energy efficiency is

• The building works with the site’s topography with

are intimately connected. Rainwater swales manage roof runoff and constructed wetlands treat graywater, while providing important didactic opportunities. A mostly drought-tolerant native plant palette will be used to avoid the need for permanent irrigation. achieved through a combination of a large PV array, which shades the landscape within the Porch area, and trees at the edge of the Porch, which shade the building, helping the project to achieve net-positive energy.

its split building levels that accommodate the site’s slope, while allowing for ADA accessible entries at the building’s front, back, and along the Porch. This minimizes the need for cut and fill operations during construction while allowing equitable access to the building.

GEORGIA TECH / ATLANTA, GEORGIA

SITE HYDROLOGY

926.00+ +914.50

A B

926.50+

928.50+

930.50+ 932.50+

GRADING GRADING PLAN

LEGEND

GEORGIA TECH / ATLANTA, GEORGIA

SECTION A

SECTION B

GEORGIA TECH / ATLANTA, GEORGIA

SITE PLANTING PLAN

PLANTING GRADING PLAN

LEGEND FORAGING LANDSCAPE

CANOPY TREE

MESIC WOODLAND

UNDERSTORY TREE

SEEPAGE WETLAND

EXISTING TREE

GEORGIA TECH / ATLANTA, GEORGIA

MESIC WOODLAND - shedding

SEEPAGE WETLAND - collecting

GEORGIA TECH / ATLANTA, GEORGIA

INTERNATIONAL CENTER FOR AUTOMOTIVE RESEARCH CLEMSON UNIVERSITY / GREENVILLE, SOUTH CAROLINA

image courtesy of seamon whiteside

Andropogon Associates, in association with the SmithGroup, provided master planning and site design services for the University’s International Center for Automotive Research. The Center serves a research-driven university park incorporating major businesses – BMW Manufacturing, Microsoft, IBM and Michelin, among others. The Center provides state-of-the-technology facilities to support Clemson University’s engineering and research curricula, and to foster collaboration and integration between the academic and business communities. The campus serves as a research park, with technology and product development laboratories, open offices, teaching centers, and secured research spaces incorporated into a 250-acre setting.

image courtesy of seamon whiteside

ICAR CLEMSON UNIVERSITY / GREENVILLE, SOUTH CAROLINA

image courtesy of seamon whiteside

The Technology Neighborhood One (TN1) Plaza, first phase of CU-ICARâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 250-acre master plan, creates a unique urban environment in which both students and information technology coexist. The plaza sensitively responds to a number of contextual challenges and serves as the campusâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s primary unifying element. Landscaping plays a significant role in providing water efficiency and biodiversity on the site. Plant selection for the plaza includes native and adaptive species that do not require any permanent irrigation. Extensive native grass and wildflower meadows are designed to filter storm water as well as provide habitat for wildlife throughout the year.

ICAR CLEMSON UNIVERSITY / GREENVILLE, SOUTH CAROLINA

LANDSCAPES THAT

GLOBAL FLORA COLLECTION GREENHOUSE WELLESLEY COLLEGE / WELLESLEY, MASSACHUSETTS

rendering of indoor / outdoor opportunities

Wellesley College chose Andropogon, in partnership with Kennedy & Violich Architecture, to design a new greenhouse for the College’s diverse and historic Global Flora Collection. The design intentionally blurs the line between indoor and outdoor spaces, becoming essentially “a landscape with a glass box over it.” The intimately integrated building and site is being designed to meet the requirements of the Living Building Challenge. The new greenhouse will serve as a bridge between the college community and the town of Wellesley, while also creating key connections between the main campus, the existing science buildings, and the botanic garden beyond. The sloping site creates an opportunity to introduce green infrastructure systems, picking up and cleaning water as it flows down the buildings and landscape at the top of the hill, through and around the greenhouse, and down to the meadows and lowlands below.

The new greenhouse will act as an extension of the science center and provide an opportunity to study and compare plants native to different regions, while exhibiting sustainable design and living processes. The interior of the greenhouse is optimized to showcase the variety and unique adaptations of plants in response to a variety of environmental conditions. It will act as a high-tech garden with the capacity to monitor overall building-scale systems as well as the individual zones of a particular plant, its roots, soil, and water use. It will not just be a place to see plants, but a place to see people studying plants. This active research will be integral to the greenhouse experience. The interior will also adapt to accommodate a range of group sizes, allowing the greenhouse to serve as a social and educational hub during the long New England winters.

WELLESLEY COLLEGE / WELLESLEY, MASSACHUSETTS

SITE SECTION A

SITE SECTION B

WELLESLEY COLLEGE / WELLESLEY, MASSACHUSETTS

PLANTS IN THE GROUND

PULL IT UP, EVEN FURTHER

AISLES BECOME STUDY ZONES

FRIENDS ALL AROUND

A CROWD GATHERS ROUND

TABLE TOP, EASY TO SEE/STUDY

PLANT MOBILITY

MULTIPLE LEVELS / SLOPES / FACES/ /EXPOSURES

WELLESLEY COLLEGE / WELLESLEY, MASSACHUSETTS

DISTANCE AND SIGHTLINES

VISITOR MOBILITY

PULL IT UP

PLACES TO BE, INTEGRATION

CELEBRATE THE BIG, NECESSARY MOVES

TABLE & BENCH AS TERRACED LANDSCAPE

ROOTS, CANOPIES, IN THE PLANTS, NEXT TO THE PLANTS, UNDER THE PLANTS

WELLESLEY COLLEGE / WELLESLEY, MASSACHUSETTS

GATEWAY CENTER

SUNY SCHOOL OF ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND FORESTRY / SYRACUSE, NEW YORK

image courtesy of SUNY ESF

As one of the nation’s leading environmental education and research institutions, The State University of New York’s (SUNY) School of Environmental Science and Forestry (ESF) has experienced substantial growth over the past decade. In response, ESF, in conjunction with the State University Construction Fund, commissioned the design and construction of a new LEED Platinum Gateway Center by Architerra architects with Andropogon. This facility establishes an architectural presence at the campus’s north entrance and echoes the school’s philosophical principles of sustainability. In an effort to exploit the limited site footprint and maximize available campus open space, the project team incorporated a fullyaccessible, 9,400-square-foot, intensive green roof, which stretches along the entire western facade of the building.

roof plan

Andropogonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s project involvement focused on three main goals: improve the social and physical campus connections, incorporate didactic landscape elements which speak to the schoolâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s educational ideals, and use green infrastructure to deal with conventional infrastructure issues, such as stormwater management. In an effort to strengthen connectivity across the campus and promote a dynamic multi-use pedestrian space, the design solutions introduced traffic calming measures to surrounding streets, widened adjacent pedestrian streetscape spaces, and created plazas at the north and south of the site to create cohesion between existing campus structures and the new Gateway Center. The planting design, including a fully accessible green roof which showcases plant communities possessing one of the highest concentrations of rare New York state-protected plants, was painstakingly developed with key faculty members to augment specific curriculum requirements. To lessen the burden on municipal stormwater management facilities, Andropogon established a network of rain gardens, green street channels, and 5,000 square feet of vegetated roof to collect, filter, and absorb on site and off site sources of stormwater. 2014 AIA COTE TOP TEN GREEN PROJECT 2014 MERIT AWARD from ASLA NY 2014 HONOR AWARD from SCUP/AIA 2014 HONOR AWARD from Boston Society of Architects

varying green roof soil depths

SUNY ESF / SYRACUSE, NEW YORK

plant community installed on green roof

prototype plant community

plant and soil media testing frames

SUNY ESF / SYRACUSE, NEW YORK

SIDWELL FRIENDS SCHOOL

SIDWELL FRIENDS SCHOOL / WASHINGTON, D.C.

Andropogon collaborated with architects Kiernan Timberlake Associates to develop a Master Plan for articulating the campus landscape within the larger urban grid, while creating intimate environments for individualized learning. Andropogon’s Landscape Master Plan & Site Design included new play areas, native plantings to provide screening for neighbors, a green roof on the new building addition, and a central courtyard with a constructed wetland designed to utilize storm and wastewater for both ecological and educational purposes. Andropogon’s plan integrated water management solutions into the landscape, inextricably linking the building to its site. The wetland becomes a “working landscape”; using biological processes to clean water while providing students with a vivid example of how such systems work in nature.

SIDWELL FRIENDS SCHOOL / WASHINGTON, D.C.

SEOUL FOREIGN SCHOOL

SEOUL FOREIGN SCHOOL / SEOUL CITY, SOUTH KOREA

The Seoul Foreign School, a K-12 private school, overlooks the city of Seoul from a mountainous wooded promontory. As the school celebrated its centennial, Andropogon created a master plan to guide the strategic development of the school, and later were asked to develop schematic designs for a new high school. Andropogonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s planning and site design organizes the campus through a hierarchy of open spaces, from a terraced entry plaza, to the paved and lawn terraces of the high school, and connections to the campus core centered on the athletic fields. The site design also unifies the four separate divisions of the school by grounding them in native Korean plant communities and historically rich, garden design practices.

aerial view of high school from southwest

The landscape of the gateway entry plaza is designed to provide a welcoming, graceful transition into the campus. The new high school is strategically placed to make a powerful campus entry statement, offering both security and universal accessibility. Andropogonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s site design carefully blurs the large scale volumes of the nearby forest and architecture by using a combination of historic stone walls, paving, and flowering ornamental trees to create a comfortable, human-scale entry, respectful of its Korean context. The landscapes of the high school literally permeate the building. The product of a rich collaboration with Ennead Architects and BAUM, South Korean architects and engineers, the site is a series of paved and lawn terraces for large gatherings and small classroom groups. Walls carefully partition outdoor rooms and also protect skylights to multifunctional spaces below. A green roof provides up to 10 raised beds for students and faculty use, while enjoying a commanding view of the campus and metropolitan Seoul. SEOUL FOREIGN SCHOOL / SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA

aerial view of high school garden

view of campus core

The campus core is defined by academic buildings and their outdoor rooms and sports facilities. The soccer field is multifunctional, also serving as the main campus assembly space. The edges of the core and its outdoor rooms are defined by multi-layered woodland plants, stone walls, and dappled shade. The outer ring includes the residential precinct for faculty and their families. This landscape offers spaces for both privacy and community amid the tall protected woodlands just outside the property. The new campus will also be a high performance landscape that will reduce site maintenance while enhancing student interaction with the natural world. The native plant communities of the campus will be low maintenance but of high ecological value. Wildflowers, flowering vines, shrubs, and trees will offer a wide range of colors, textures, and forms to create dynamic seasonal displays that attract birds, butterflies, and other insects, enriching the experience of the place.

SEOUL FOREIGN SCHOOL / SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA

THADEN SCHOOL

THADEN SCHOOL / BENTONVILLE, ARKANSAS

Thaden School will be a new independent school located in downtown Bentonville, Arkansas. Andropogon, working with Eskew+Dumez+Ripple and Marlon Blackwell architects, is designing a campus for an innovative, integrative science and humanities curriculum revolving around the three themes of meals (food), wheels (bicycles), and reels (filmmaking). The design team developed a series of complementary, indoor and outdoor teaching spaces that promote sustainability and hands-on learning. The Thaden School campus will challenge students to fully engage their minds and bodies throughout an integrated campus with programmatic centers for for teaching, gathering, and celebrating; agricultural landscapes for eating, feeding, and cooperative work; and natural landscapes and corridors to provide ecosystem services and exposure to natural processes, such as water, and plant communities of the unique eco-region, as well as spaces for motion and reflection.

rendered site plan

EN SCHOOL

landscape structure

THADEN SCHOOL / BENTONVILLE, ARKANSAS

FOOD

DEMONSTRATION

PERMACULTURE

food and the whole person in the landscape

THADEN SCHOOL / BENTONVILLE, ARKANSAS

LANDSCAPES THAT

STEM BUILDING + GERTRUDE FORD WALK UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI / OXFORD, MISSISSIPPI

Recognized as an R-1 post-doctoral research university by the Carnegie Classification, the University of Mississippi is dedicated to increasing STEM literacy for all students on campus. Key to this effort is the new 200,000GSF STEM building and its landscape, which integrates the existing buildings and circulation system on campus to create a distinct Engineering, Science, and Technology precinct. The building and its site are designed to foster interdisciplinary programs and collaboration by providing environments for studentcentered learning through a series of labs, classrooms, and outdoor learning spaces where students and faculty can meet and engage with the built environment to learn about STEM fields in both formal and informal ways. Andropogon is serving as Landscape Architect of Record for the STEM building, working with Ellenzweig, Design Architect and Lab Planner, in collaboration with McCarty Architects as Architect of Record. Andropogonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s site

FASER HALL

SHOEMAKER HALL

HUME HALL

STEM GARDEN

WEST PLAZA

STEM BUILDING

EAST PLAZA

GERTRUDE FORD WALK

CARRIER HALL

design is critical to connecting the STEM building to the existing campus elements and creating a distinct character for the district. Plaza spaces reinforce primary building entrances and provide informal meeting areas. Interstitial spaces are transformed into teaching gardens. Walkways connect a network of outdoor rooms of varying scale to accommodate both intimate gatherings and large assemblies. Educational opportunities are maximized throughout the site by revealing geology, stormwater management systems, and native plant communities of the Northern Hilly Gulf Coastal Plan ecoregion, while managing water runoff and providing habitat. The new Gertrude C. Ford Way will act as an extension of the major pedestrian artery that serves as both daily circulation, as well as a celebratory promenade during football games, and must support time honored traditions such as the Walk of Champions.

UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI / OXFORD, MISSISSIPPI

STEM GARDEN

FLOODPLAIN GARDEN

TERRACE SEATING

UPLAND GARDEN

UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI / OXFORD, MISSISSIPPI

GERTRUDE FORD WALK

PLANTING

GERTRUDE FORD WALK

MIXED STORY PLANTING

LOADING DOCK

UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI / OXFORD, MISSISSIPPI

EACH PERSON HAS A DOMAIN

PROXEMETICS: OBSERVATIONS OF THE USE OF SPACE RELATED TO THE SPACING BETWEEN PEOPLE. RATHER THAN STRICT GUIDELINES, PROXEMICS SERVE AS A SYSTEM FOR GAUGING SOCIAL INTERACTIONS

INTIMATE DISTANCE (0 - 1.5’)

40 SF

PERSONAL DISTANCE (1.5’ - 4’)

80 SF

SOCIAL DISTANCE (4’ - 12’)

PUBLIC DISTANCE (12’ - 25’)

450 SF 2400 SF

UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI / OXFORD, MISSISSIPPI

DAILY USE

SMALL EVENT

GAME DAY

UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI / OXFORD, MISSISSIPPI

NEW HIGH PERFORMANCE SCIENCE + ENGINEERING CENTER TUFTS UNIVERSITY / MEDFORD, MASSACHUSETTS

science building, tufts university, Medford, ma

Andropogon, with Payette, is assisting Tufts University with concept planning for a New High Performance Science and Engineering Center and the strategic development of the surrounding Hinge Block. The steeply sloped block connects the upper and lower campuses and is adjacent to a future transit hub. Andropogonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s site design not only addresses the needs of the new building, but also enhances connections to the wider campus and improves existing pedestrian and vehicular circulation through this critical urban block. The concept plan includes the introduction of universally accessible paths along the steep slopes and the design of new courtyards and plazas for the campus community.

rendered view from east

The site design includes strategies to capture and reveal stormwater runoff and incorporate it into the landscape elements. Rainwater will follow the existing topography of the Hinge Block and cascade through the site, providing opportunities for interaction and education. An integrated system of planting beds, permeable paving, runnels, rain gardens, special soils, and cisterns will allow for the infiltration, capture, and reuse of stormwater for site irrigation. The overarching goal of the designed system is to replicate natural conditions and, whenever possible, infiltrate water directly into the local aquifer.

overall site plan

TUFTS UNIVERSITY / MEDFORD, MASSACHUSETTS

ve eA lleg

lleg eA ve

eA ve lleg Co

LEGEND

CIRCULATION

nA sto Bo

ve nA sto Bo

Dearborn

Dearborn Rd

Dearborn

GATHERING SPACES

TREES LEGEND

LEGEND

PEDESTRIAN

EXISTING TREE TO REMAIN

PLAZAS, PAVED

ACCESSIBLE

PROPOSED TREE

SPECIAL EVENT

VEHICULAR

EXISTING TREE TO BE REMOVED

GREEN, LAWN, OPEN

TUFTS UNIVERSITY / MEDFORD, MASSACHUSETTS

ROOF RUNOFF CAPTURE VEGETATED ROOF

RUNNEL

RAIN GARDENS

LEGEND RUNNEL/GUTTER

LAWN / PLANTING BEDS

DIRECTION OF FLOW

PERMEABLE PAVERS

RAIN GARDEN

VEGETATED ROOF

BELOW GROUND CISTERN

CAPTURED ROOF

INFILTRATION BED

CISTERNS

TUFTS UNIVERSITY / MEDFORD, MASSACHUSETTS

RAINWATER CAPTURE STRATEGIES s Bo

Co lle

e Av

Av e

ton

dearborn Rd

LEGEND RUNNEL/GUTTER

RaINwaTER maNaGEmENT - BLOCK wIdE STRa DIRECTION OF FLOW

RAIN GARDEN

BELOW GROUND CISTERN

TUFTS UNIVERSITY - HINGE BLOCK / landscape analYsIs & InItIal cOncepts

TUFTS UNIVERSITY / MEDFORD, MASSACHUSETTS

PERELMAN PLAZA + MAIN QUADRANGLE DREXEL UNIVERSITY / PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA

perelman plaza seating

As part of a long-term relationship with Drexel University, Andropogon has developed campus-wide recommendations in an award-winning master plan and assisted with the transformation of this urban campus through the redesign of key open spaces. The Drexel University Master Plan provides a vision for a vibrant urban university with buildings and public spaces that embrace and enliven the streets. Andropogon, in collaboration with Goody Clancy, analyzed the existing conditions and developed landscape and streetscape recommendations. The final plan celebrates Drexelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s key role as a gateway to West Philadelphia, identifies opportunities for iconic new spaces, and creates a framework for establishing a sustainable campus. The plan also provides practical guidelines for tree planting and maintenance. 2012 SCUP Honor Award in Excellence in Planning for an Existing Campus from SCUP

perelman plaza rendering

Following the completion of the master plan, Andropogon was selected to design a new, 1.5-acre â&#x20AC;&#x153;center of gravityâ&#x20AC;? for Drexel University along the former 32nd Street between Chestnut and Market Streets. The $5 million new campus hub, to be known as The Raymond G. Perelman Plaza, is a destination for the campus and neighboring communities, providing an outdoor social and event space where thousands of people can meet, eat, study, and come together for large-scale gatherings. The design features an improved flow for pedestrian traffic, seamless integration with existing building entrances, well-planned seating, and increased shade and natural beauty. The landscape will also manage stormwater runoff and collect and reuse rainwater.

campus plan

DREXEL UNIVERSITY / PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA

conceptual site plan for perelman plaza and main quad

main quad view towards lebow building

Andropogon is also redesigning the existing main quadrangle at Drexel University, which provides links to major streets, public transportation, and university connections. Currently, the quadrangle has few landscape amenities and can be confusing to navigate. Andropogonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s conceptual design pushes circulation to the edge of the surrounding buildings to make room for a central green space. The major diagonal pathway connecting Chestnut Street to JFK Boulevard is transformed into a woodland walk with enhanced plantings and shade trees. Gathering spaces, that support daily social interaction and allow for large scale events, are a core element of the site program. The center of the quadrangle is linked to the larger urban fabric through unified streetscapes. The design also provides for outdoor amenities, such as flexible seating and food trucks.

DREXEL UNIVERSITY / PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA

LANDSCAPES FOR

U.S. COAST GUARD HEADQUARTERS

GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION / WASHINGTON, D.C

As a member of the master planning and site development team led by architects Perkins+Will, Andropogon served as the landscape architect and ecological planner for the St. Elizabeths West Campus and landscape architect for the new United States Coast Guard Headquarters Facility. As part of the campus Landscape Integration Plan, a soil and stormwater management plan was prepared in collaboration with civil engineers, historic preservationists, soil scientists, geotechnical engineers and hydrogeologists. In the midst of the stringent local and federal stormwater regulatory context, the soil and stormwater management plan presents an appropriate range of soil and stormwater management strategies and desirable locations for individual Best Management Practices (BMPâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s) within the historical campus. The process for drafting the plan included a unique combination of resources representing a wide array of technical expertise to create a visual and technical tool to manage soil and stormwater on the campus throughout the stages of development. The Headquarters Facility was designed to integrate within its 37-acre site. The landscape, informed by detailed site analysis, sustainable design principals, and stormwater Best Management Practices, creates a functional landscape with exceptional performance and beauty. The siteâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s high performance landscapes are designed to be integrated with the building systems; harvesting, treating, and reusing stormwater that is generated from both the site and buildings. In addition to green roofs, the storm water management system includes wet ponds, bio-swales, and step pools to handle storm water runoff from the entire campus to treat the 2-year, 15-year, 100-year storms, and beyond to accommodate future development.

CENTER FOR SUSTAINABLE LANDSCAPES PHIPPS CONSERVATORY / PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA

The Center for Sustainable Landscapes (CSL) is a 24,350-square-foot education, research, and administration facility set within a 2.9-acre landscape that is part of Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens. The core function of the CSL is to increase public awareness of the interconnection between the natural and built environments and the efficacy and synergy of integrated sustainable building and landscape systems. The CSL site was previously a dilapidated brownfield, once used by the City of Pittsburgh Public Works department as a fueling station, and had suffered through decades of environmental degradation. The design team had to create a completely new landscape comprised of indigenous plants and supported by engineered soils that would express Phippsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; mission of demonstrating the benefits of humanity living in harmony with nature. The CSL is an unprecedented model of systems-based design that fully integrates its building and landscape, and advances a new paradigm in which the two are functionally interdependent. In producing all of its own renewable energy, and treating and reusing all water captured on site, the CSL demonstrates the benefits of humanity living in harmony with nature. An integrative design approach, where client, architect, landscape architect, engineers, and construction professionals collaborated as equal partners, was key to the CSL being the first and only project to attain the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s four highest sustainable building certifications, including the Living Building Challenge, LEED, Sustainable SITES, and WELL Building. 2015-2016 Landscape Architecture Foundation Case Study Investigation Program

SHOEMAKER GREEN

UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA / PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA

Shoemaker Green is a 2.75 acre site that connects the central campus to the athletic fields to the east. Under the sloping lawn and mature, shade trees, Shoemaker Green is a heavy-duty piece of living machinery with the capacity to track its performance. Through a fiveyear monitoring plan, the site has become a living laboratory of green infrastructure that is informing sustainable design and maintenance policies for the entire University campus.The monitoring plan has the goals of testing the green infrastructure’s performance, while also providing feedback for facility managers to improve landscape performance across the campus. Data from the ongoing monitoring has provided essential information to ensure that the site maintains maximum performnace as designed. Preliminary findings point to the often overlooked value of plants and soils in stormwater management. Transpiration measurements of the vegetation show that native floodplain species and uncompacted turf transpire anywhere from 3-10 gallons of water per day during the growing season. The data has also highlighted the need for special stormwater management measures during the winter, when the cistern is winterized due to the use of deicing salts and the vegetation is dormant. The monitoring at Shoemaker Green has proven that even relatively small urban landscapes are capable of exceeding environmental goals. There is still much more to learn through the ongoing collaboration between maintenance, monitoring, and site design. 2016 ASLA Honor Award in the Research category 2015 McCoy, E.R. “Wet lab” in Green Building + Design, 5 (30), 99-101 2015-2016 Landscape Architecture Foundation Case Study Investigation Program

BARTRAM’S MILE BIOCHAR RESEARCH CITY OF PHILADELPHIA / PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA

In 2016 Andropogon’s Integrative Research Department launched a 3-year landscape performance monitoring study at Bartram’s Mile – a greenspace redevelopment along Philadelphia’s Schuylkill River – to investigate the question, “Does biochar influence native meadow establishment in a post-industrial urban landscape?” The site, which was designed by Andropogon with research in mind, contains three constructed berms that are uniformly seeded with a native meadow mix. Biochar was applied to two of the berms during construction, while the third functions as an experimental control. Andropogon researchers Emily McCoy and Lauren Mandel are using this case study to monitor vegetation (plant coverage, biodiversity, above-ground biomass); soil (temperature, moisture, nutrient levels, carbon content, pH, organic matter content, biota); and insects (biodiversity, activity) as a means of evaluating native meadow establishment and health. Engagement with the project’s in-house landscape architects enabled a thorough review of pre-construction records, design documentation, and construction photographs, as well as access to information from the landscape contractor. Results gleaned from this research initiative will feed directly into Andropogon’s adaptive feedback loop to inform the design of future projects.

www.andropogon.com

10 shurs lane

706 mountford avenue

Philadelphia, pa 19127

raleigh, nc 27603

215 487 0700

919 800 0523