Marshland

Marshland Center for Urban Ecology

Jon Morris

Miranda Donovan

Ruddy Bel Hantier

The building is guided by sequenced stormwater catchment pools that guide runoff water from the surrounding areas down below the building and out to the marsh.

i

With the ever growing city of Washington DC comes many challenges, and one of the most prominent challenges to face our generation is our usage, storage, and release of water.

Washington DC was built on what once was a marshland, and was built up and filled in to support the city that stands today. Challenges with water maintenance have been present since the dawn of the 19th century, as the city was growing and later with the Industrial Revolution and the additional growth that entailed.

The Center for Urban Ecology is focused on the challenges of our most recent water dilemma: Stormwater runoff. Cities around the US have been effected by unexpected weather patterns due to the effects of Global Warming, such as the North-Eastern coast hurricanes and other storm events. Houston, Texas saw never-before seen flooding among many other cities and towns across the US, and DC is no exception to water management issues.

The marshland acts as a safety blanket for the local community from the rain and storm events to continue in the future. As more precious, pervious land is built upon, the goal of the Center for Urban Ecology was to not only engage the nature and wildlife of the area, but also to act as a call for buildings to effectively bring stormwater management in-house.

Through this approach, the challenges posed by global warming and stormwater runoff is a community effort and not resting on the shoulders of public infrastructure alone.

Figure 1.

1. Water Infrastructure Map - D C Water Atlas

1

Parking Lot

Green Roof

Rainwater Runoff

Marshland

The marshland collects the water and allows it to be used for native plants and on a greater scale, provides habitat for plants, bird species, and other local fauna

A water catchment pond beneath your feet acts as a way to slow down the runoff of water. Stones and small waternative grasses “break” the flow and eases the water towards the marsh.

Rainwater is collected from the paved areas of our campus and are directed to spouts that direct the water to the catchment pond.

2

Georgetown Reservoir

Private Entry

Labs

Offices

Classrooms

Marshland

Learning Lawns

Entry Hall

M AC A RT

HU R BL VD NW

Parking Lots

Stormwater Channels Walking Trail Greenhouse/Gathering Space

TR T S O I ELL

EE T

G RE ENE PL

N

NW

Site Plan 1/64” = 1’-0”

3

Load

Private Entry

Lobby

Entry Hall Utility

Greenhouse/ Gathering

Sto.

AV

First Floor Plan 1/32” = 1’-0”

Entry

4

Mech

Wet Labs

Offices

Exhibit

Classrooms

Reception

Ground Floor Plan 1/32” = 1’-0”

5

C

B 4

5

D

3 2

A

1 6

E Program

Procession

10

6

9

A

10 10

99

5 66

4 55

3 44

2 33

1 22

11

AA

B C

BB CC

D

E

DD EE

F FF

Stormwater Catchment Ponds

Structure

6

Access

Marsh

Lawns

Figure 2.

2. Site Aerial

7

Access

Marsh

Lawns

Points of Rest Moments Path Path (vertical)

Figure 3.

3. Site Procession

8

Geo Thermal Heat

Sunlight

Winds Cooled from Marsh

Rainwater Collection

Figure 5.

Steel Shell Structure

Concrete Load Bearing Walls

Figure 4.

4. Site Massing

5. Sustainability Diagram

Figure 6.

6. Structural Diagram

9

Figure 7.

Figure 8.

7. Longitudinal Section

8. Cross Section

10

Green Roof Parapet Cap Blocking as Req’d Waterproof Membrane Rigid 6” Insulation Steel Beam

Gyp Ceiling

Wood Docks

Rigid 3” Insulation Waterproof Membrane Infill Dirt+Plants

Figure 10.

Figure 9.

Figure 11.

9. Wall Section at Catchment Pool

10. Facade Detail

11. Facade Plan Detail

11

American Wildflowers Tulip Poplar Various Liriodendron Tulipifera

Site Ecology and Plant life

American White Water Lily Buttonbrush Nymphaea Odorata Cephalanthus occidentalis

Spartina grass Sporobolus Alterniflorus

White Oak Flowering Dogwood Quercus Alba Cornus Florida

12

Steel Structure

Equitone Cement Fiber Panels

Wood Flooring

HVAC System

Information Board

LED Lamps

Interior Space Detail

13

The Docks - Perspective towards Greenhouse

14

Figure 12.

12. Entry Hall - View towards Marsh

13. Dusk on the Marsh

Figure 13.

15

First Moment

16

Second

Moment

17

The Classroom - Perspective towards ramp and Greenhouse

18

Learning Lawns - Perspective towards Greenhouse

19

The Docks - Nighttime perspective

20

Physical Model Photos

21

ARCH403 - Prof Cross - 11/8/21