THE HOLDSWORTH CENTER

Ten Eyck Landscape Architects

DESIGN CONSTRUCTED | COMMERCIAL

The Holdsworth Center offers world-class training and leadership development to selected school districts through a generous multi-year investment in public education. To enhance the existing ecological character of the site, 23 acres of uplands, a pecan grove, and a riparian edge were preserved, constituting over 50% of the total acreage. Trails, circulation paths, and buildings were woven through this existing and new vegetation in an integrated design move aimed at increasing visitors’ connection to nature. Additionally, this sustainable campus features spaces for large gatherings, intimate conversations, games, and exercise that are knitted into the restored landscape.

ROBERT L. B. TOBIN LAND BRIDGE

Rialto Studio

DESIGN CONSTRUCTED | PUBLIC

Enabling both pedestrians and animals to cross a six-lane parkway safely, the Robert L.B. Tobin Land Bridge opened in late 2020’s the first land bridge of this significant scale and use to be conceived and built in the United States. At 159 feet wide and spanning the full width of a San Antonio parkway, the structure reconnects both people and wildlife between the two previously separated tracts of Phil Hardberger Park. The structure is entirely covered with vegetation for a seamless transition from the native landscape to the newly constructed parkland elevated off the ground. Wildlife viewing blinds and an elevated canopy walkway allow visitors to experience wildlife from new perspectives. Site soils were reused, and 250,000 gallons of onsite rainwater harvesting supplies irrigation needs.

Allen Molsen Farm

Parkhill

DESIGN UNREALIZED | PUBLIC

Increased food demands have paved the way for industrialized farming, large-scale animal domestication, dramatic irrigation consumption, genetically modified foods, fertilizer, and chemical use. Technology, food production, and delivery have made it convenient for people to buy food in minutes without talking to anyone, knowing where the food came from, how the food was prepared, or what its contents are.

Molsen Farm is an agriculture revival on the last 88 acres of remaining farmland in Allen, Texas. The Ag-Park would be the community center for agriculture education, crop demonstrations, sustainable farming methods, and organic alternatives that would give people back the essential tools required to participate in agriculture within the urban environment. Molsen Farm would provide future generations with the knowledge to grow a healthy future rooted in sustainable practices and equitable community engagement.

Dallas Water Commons

Studio Outside

PLANNING & ANALYSIS

The Dallas Water Commons is the result of a dynamic public-private partnership between the City of Dallas and The Dallas Wetlands Foundation. Immediately south of downtown and north of the Great Trinity Forest, the Dallas Water Commons provides an accessible amenity in the urban core of Dallas, one of the fastest growing cities in the US. The Commons is approximately 17 acres and creates a dynamic landscape that provides valuable public park space while filtering and cleansing urban stormwater, cycled through both constructed cells and restored wetland ponds. The DWC demonstrates water conservation, water filtration, and flood management, while creating a beautiful and educational place for visitors and students. This living laboratory will establish a space for experts in ecology, engineering, design, public health, and education to collaborate on solving the critical issues facing cities around the country and world.

Metro Urban Design Manual

SWA Group

COMMUNICATION

In the past three decades, the City of Houston has suffered from catastrophic climactic flooding disasters and heat island effect, unrestrained sprawl, social inequity, and negative perceptions of transit as an inferior alternative to automotive transportation. The new METRO Urban Design Manual (UDM) aspires to challenge planning and design excellence at regional, neighborhood, and site scales. In order to enhance environmental resilience, diverse communities, sustainable growth, and customer experience, the UDM provides guidelines that support the high-quality standard of design, delivery, and maintenance that contributes to safety, comfort, and quality of life throughout the METRO service area.

Sanshan Hillside Park

SWA Group

INTERNATIONAL

Located in the heart of south China’s Pearl River Delta region, Sanshan Hillside Park preserves a rare urban mountain forest in the heart of a rapidly growing urban district. Rising above the surrounding, low-lying urban water-town fabric, the project repositions this unique urban landform as a wilderness-enriched mountain forest park, balancing the city’s growing need for public open space while providing an ecological oasis that connects people with their natural environment. Enriched with cultural gathering spaces and trails, the park provides ample recreational opportunities that bring together the community. The hilltop canopy walk and the mini library have been popular destinations, promoting the reading culture among young Chinese people, and offering unique and immersive perspectives on the city and its natural systems.

AT THE DISCRETION OF THE JURY, ONE AWARD OF EXCELLENCE MAY BE GIVEN

AT THE DISCRETION OF THE JURY, ONE AWARD OF EXCELLENCE MAY BE GIVEN PER CATEGORY

Arbor Hills Nature Preserve

MESA Design Group

CLASSIC

Arbor Hills Nature Preserve is a story about preserving heritage and nature, and seizing an opportunity to take a risk by departing from typical park development to create a special place in the community. Twenty-years since its initial development, the project is still one of the most loved and used parks in the City of Plano. At a time when urban development continues to unfold around the site, Arbor Hills Nature Preserve invites visitors to rediscover nature in the heart of the suburbs and provides visitors with a glimpse of what the landscape of North Texas used to look like.