Michael Coyle Student Portfolio Pennsylvania State University
[Landscape Architecture]
Michael Coyle
4 Pansy Court, Newtown PA 18940 // (215)-208-6542 mtc5055@gmail.com // www.michaelcoyledesign.com
Objective
To work in the field of landscape architecture and learn more in various types of planning and design
Education
2006-2011 The Pennsylvania State University Bachelors in Landscape Architecture Overall GPA 3.28 // Five-year bachelors program graduation date May, 2011 Curriculum Highlights: Design Implementation, Design Studio, Storm Water Design, Landscape Architecture History, Landscape Materials, Art Theory, Soils, Math, Plant Biology, Geology, Ecology, American History, Design Visualization, and Urban Design Sede di Roma. Rome, Italy Fall semester 2009 Completed courses in Urban Design, Italian Studies, and Foreign Study Design
Experience
Boucher & James, Inc // Doylestown, Pennsylvania September, 2011 - Present Worked on municipal ordinance writing along with landscape revisions and inspections Freelance // Cape May, New Jersey Summer 2010 Designed and renovated an old Victorian Cape May house, by installing an irrigation system for garden as well as construct new bluestone sidewalks around the house Bucks County Community College “Kids on Campus.� 2004-Present Instructed middle/high school students on various design related camps at Bucks County Community Colleges enrichment camps Taught camps such as AutoCAD, Google Sketchup, Digital Design, Adobe Illustrator, and Adobe Photoshop Summer 2011 Penn State University Architecture and Landscape Architecture Camps Guided high school students through the design process in Architecture and Landscape Architecture
Awards and Honors
Attained Eagle Scout with Bronze Palm; the highest honor in The Boy Scouts of America 2nd Place in Penn State’s Stormwater Design Advertisement Competition
Activities:
LASS (Landscape Architecture Student Society) member; Graphic Designer Position Volunteered with American Cancer Society Competed in The Premio Piranesi Design Competition Involved in PARK(ing) Day Participated in “Brad Cantrell: Animating Montages Workshop” Participated in “Walter Hood: Performance Landscapes Workshop” Involved with Bennett Family Center Playground Charrette
Skills
Proficient with: AutoCAD, Rhino, Google Sketchup, Adobe Creative Suite, Microsoft Office Suite Experience with: 3D Studio Max, Maya, ArcGIS
References Available Upon Request
Projects
Anacostia Riverfront Community F.D.R. National Historic Site Viale di Trastevere Toronto Waterfront Walter Hood Workshop Eagle Scout Project
Anacostia Riverfront Community A brownfield reclamation project
This studio was centered around mixed-use development. The site location is along the Anacostia River in Washington D.C. I wanted to focus on the idea of community. My goal was to design community gardens and farmers markets to attract this sense of community. The project location was originally a brownfield site, that was in desperate need of redevelopment. The site is cut off by several large highways and is in a less desirable area of Washington D.C.
Community Farmers Market
Anacostia Riverfront Community
Garden Box n atio t e Veg
r nte Pla
tion a g i Irr
ite pos m Co
Walk
Garden Box
Walk
Community Gardens
Michael Coyle Student Portfolio
F.D.R. National Historic Site An ecotourism project
The FDR National Historic Site is in need of ecological preservation. Through this studio I examined preservation practices within the landscape. The most viable solution I discovered for the FDR site was to reclaim the deteriorating wetlands. Community involvement and tourism were the cornerstones to this project. A boardwalk trail system along the wetland areas would provide an educational understanding of how the wetlands function.
Wetland Educational Walk
Aerial Map of Historic Roosevelt Family Estate
F.D.R. National Historic Site
Historic Roosevelt Family Estate Val-Kill Site Boundary
Wetland Corridor
Albany Post Road
Historic Roosevelt Family Estate Val-Kill Site Boundary Existing Wetlands Proposed Wetland Buffer Proposed Wetland Corridor Wetland Connection Points
Wetland Corridor with Aerial Map
Lan
250
Meters
500
1000
Wetland Connection Points
Historic Roosevelt Family Estate Albany Post Road Val-Kill Site Boundary Existing Wetlands Proposed Wetland Buffer Proposed Wetland Corridor
FDR Sit Str
Promoting Ecotourism
nd Parcels
R/Val-Kill te Boundary reets
Michael Coyle Student Portfolio
Viale di Trastevere A pedestrian oriented avenue
During my time at Penn State they require us to travel abroad to Rome for a semester. This project revolves around the redevelopment of a major vehicular corridor (Viale di Trastevere) that desperately needs revitalization. The avenue stretched 20 blocks in the Trastevere neighborhood of Rome. Because this was a central corridor for the area, I approached the avenue as a spine which holds the neighborhood together. The concept I developed used the idea of the central nervous system. The project also consisted of a plaza design adjacent to the avenue. This was our first chance to work at a small scale in an urban environment. The plaza played off of the central nervous system concept and allowed for easy movement to the rest of the Trastevere neighborhood.
Pedestrian Oriented Design
Viale di Trastevere
8:00 am
12:00 pm
H o s p G i t a r e Via Em l i l io M e n o ros P S p ini o l i a c t i e c
4:00 pm
North
a
l
Pedestrian Oriented Design
Michael Coyle Student Portfolio
Plaza Design Bluestone
+ +
+ +
Bituminous Paver
Toronto Waterfront Community oriented park design
This project was based around a collaborative effort from architects and landscape architects. The goal was to develop a sustainable mix-use development in Toronto’s new Waterfront. I also developed an individual project that would serve as a park for the surrounding neighborhoods. The concept behind my park design was culture and community. It was important for me to design for the community and bring their needs to a much needed park within Toronto’s new waterfront.
Wild Flower Meadow
Toronto Waterfront
Site Context
This park was designed as a “culture park,” family oriented to serve the surrounding community. The purpose is to work with the surroundings by allowing optimal use of the space.
15
Site Plan 2 6 5 3
1. Soccer/Active Use Recreation Field 2. Dog Park 3. Bicycle Parking 4. Men/Women’s Locker Room 5. Ice Hockey Rinks with Third Kilometer Track 6. Wave Hills 7. Chess and Games Park 8. Wild Flower Meadow 9. Reflecting Pool/Ice Skating Rink 10. Event Field 11. Event Space 12. Wetland Demonstration Garden 13. Ticket and Information Building 14. Park Maintenance Building 15. Northern Hardwood Forest
Site Section
10
14 13
9
1
Site Program
7
11
4 8
12
Culture Park
Michael Coyle Student Portfolio
Section of Amphitheater
Toronto Waterfront Don River
Event Space
The main objective was to create a space that is unique to its surroundings. Toronto is a hockey town. Three ice skating rinks have been designed to allow the community to have active recreation
Wetland Demonstration Garden Wild Flower Meadow
Sidewalks
Wave Hills 1/3 Kilometer Track Hockey Rinks
Tree/Shrubs
Soccer/Multiuse S
Northe
Grass
Meadow
Composite
Nor
th
Culture Park
Michael Coyle Student Portfolio
North
Sports Field
ern Hardwood Forest
Park Entry
Wetland Demonstration Garden Park Offices Park Plaza Park Entry
Park Entry
Toronto Waterfront Wetland Demonstration Area
Ac
americanus us r o
Pa
virgatum um nic
Culture Park
Michael Coyle Student Portfolio
Light Study
North
Light Location
th r o N
Walter Hood Workshop Performance Landscapes
Walter Hood came to Penn State in February of 2011 to conduct a workshop. Walter expressed the idea of sampling to create a concept. The project he had us work on was based in The Hill District in Pittsburgh. We used the upland forest as our sample. The site was located on a slowly eroding and sliding landscape due to coal extraction.
I developed two samples based off of the upland forest. The first idea was understanding light patterns on the forest floor. I triangulated this pattern and developed a concept for The Hill District site. From this pattern I created a system of caissons to help create a foundation for the site. The second sample was based off of slope and contours found in a tributary. I was able to develop a pattern from the contours to understand how slope works in a typical tributary found in an upland forest. The final product we had to do was to create a series of perspectives to show our designs.
Retaining Wall Design
Walter Hood Workshop Fragment
This sample was taken from a tributary in Mount Nittany. Based on the slope, I triangulated the steepest parts. The result is a map of crude contours that I overlayed onto the Hill District Site. This overlayed plan is designed to hold back the sliding hill with reinforced concrete retaining walls. Reinforced Concrete Retaining Wall
Tributary
Option 1: Fragment
*Model of Fragment
Sampling Upland Forest
Michael Coyle Student Portfolio Constellation
The idea for constellation came from sampling of the forest floor. I found patterns in where light touched the upland forest and I connected them together. The result created a constellation. This was overlayed onto the site. Points where light gathered more abundantly was given a larger node. These nodes were developed into caissons. Caissons will add support and prevent the hill from sliding. Caisson Retaining Wall
Option 2: Constellation
*Model of Constellation
Eagle Scout Project Connecting Nature
My Eagle Scout project was the design and construction of a 40 foot truss bridge that took two years to complete. More than 400 man hours helped in the process. This project was one of the biggest influences on me to go into the field of landscape architecture. The bridge is located in Tyler State Park in Newtown, Pennsylvania. It completes The Nature Trail which The Porter Run Creek goes through. The project taught me about the importance of communication and design. There were several phases that took place along the way to complete the project. Throughout the process I talked with civil engineers, maintenance supervisors, and mechanical engineers. Since 2005 the bridge has stood strong and acquired much love from the local park-goers. The Nature Trail is now the most heavily used trail in the park.
Truss Bridge in Tyler Park